Gridiron Experts

Where Does Texans Rookie Ben Tate Fit In?

With Houston Texans rookie running back Ben Tate agreeing to terms on his rookie deal, fantasy owners everywhere are wondering what kind of value the former Auburn back has heading into the 2010 fantasy football season.

The answer? Unless Arian Foster and Steve Slaton fall asleep in training camp, it’s not much.

Tate has a fierce combination of size and strength, and is a shifty runner for his stature. However, Arian Foster’s solid closing performances to the 2009 season, and Slaton’s experience and explosiveness have them both penciled in as the number one and two backs for Houston to start training camp.

No one is knocking Tate’s ability to climb the depth chart over the coarse of the next month, but considering how high the coaching staff is on Foster as the lead back, and Slaton as the change of pace back, it’s not looking good for fantasy owners who are already drafting Tate in fantasy drafts. …Continue reading Where Does Texans Rookie Ben Tate Fit In?

“Houston, we have a problem”.

That’s something many fantasy owners were thinking last year as the Houston Texans #1 ranked passing game was complimented by a putrid 30th ranked rushing attack. A number of factors led to the ground game’s ineffectiveness, from injuries to underperformance. Gone are veterans Chris Brown and Ryan Moats. In are late season hero Arian Foster, and the 2nd round pick out of Auburn, Ben Tate. Also returning is 2008 rookie surprise, Steve Slaton.

Slaton’s breakthrough performance in 2008 made him one of the most coveted running backs in fantasy football last year. In anticipation of the increased workload, the Texans encouraged Slaton to beef up to 215 lbs last off-season. The added bulk decreased Slaton’s effectiveness by taking away his speed and quickness, and caused him to be caught in the backfield for a loss or no gain far too often. Slaton seemed to lose confidence, ran indecisively and fumbled 7 times before his season ended in week 12 with a stinger. This injury required surgery to fuse two vertebrae in his neck.

The news isn’t all bad for Slaton. He still managed to score 7 TD’s in his 11 games in 2009. All indications are that he is healthy and ready to go for training camp. He also is back down to his original playing weight of 200 lbs. With bigger backs on the roster to help with the carries, it is thought that he will be more effective with less carries and more catches out of the backfield.

One of the larger backs on the team is incumbent starter Arian Foster. Foster, an un-drafted free agent out of Tennessee, came out of nowhere to help end the 2009 NFL season with 216 rushing yards and 3 scores in Weeks 16 and 17 to nearly lead the Texans to the playoffs. Foster spent the first 9 games of last year on the practice squad, and did not get a carry until Week 13, certainly making the most of his opportunity. Foster averaged 4.8 YPC and was by far the best in the Houston backfield. …Continue reading 3 Headed Texan RB Monster Or Fantasy Sleeper Brewing?

Original Texan Kicked To The Curb?

The last original member of the 2002 Houston Texans expansion team will be battling it out this training camp. Houston signed Neil Rackers on Monday, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Brown, who used to be a sure bet for Houston, had a disappointing season last year, completing only 21 out of 32 attempts. Some of his misses were in game tying or game winning situations, which could have

ultimately led to the first playoff appearance for the Texans. Rackers on the other hand was near perfect,  splitting the uprights for 16 of his 17 attempts. However, distance is a factor for Rackers, who is much more reliable in shorter field goal scenarios.

Houston is being surprisingly loyal to their oldest alumni, by giving him the chance to compete for his job; most teams would simply cut a kicker without a second thought. Kris Brown will be under a great deal of pressure throughout training camp, haunted by his “Ray Finkle” moments, and chanting to himself: “laces out!”

Team Needs Mock Draft (Part 2)

It’s a little early to be predicting the first round of the NFL Draft, yet people love to speculate what teams will do (Mel Kiper 9.0 by March). Every year Gridiron Experts refuses to post a Mock Draft too early, so instead we’re posting a 3 part team needs mock draft, giving an educated guess to what teams might be thinking.

Not every position that is lacking on a NFL squad has to be filled with a first round pick. There are still a ton of free agents that are about to hit the open market, and second year players that can step in now that they have a year under them, and the first few weeks of March should completely change the draft. So here is a look at the NFL Draft based on how teams are sitting at the moment.

Read the First Article: Team Needs Mock Draft (Part 1)

11) Denver Broncos Team Needs: DT | DE | WR | QB

Strange to see Denver this high on the board considering the fast start to the season with new coach Josh McDaniel’s. The Broncos completely fell apart in the final month of the season, losing 4 games in a row, including losses to the Chiefs and Raiders.

The Broncos will likely try to improve their running defense through free agency and could target an offensive playmaker with pick 10. The Brandon Marshall trade rumors have started to fire up, causing many mock draft experts to target the top wide receiver landing in Denver.

Demaryius Thomas is high in our books, but a broken foot could hurt his stock value, making Dez Bryant a strong favorite. There is also a chance that if a top QB is available at 10 the Broncos could fill the shoes left by Jay Cutler. Either way the Broncos are sitting strong at pick 10 to take the best player available without the huge rookie money at the top of the draft.

12) Miami Dolphins Team Needs: WR | LB | SS

The Dolphins had injuries to key players in ’09, but did an amazing job filling position spots. Players stepped up week after week to fill roles unlike any other team. The Dolphins are a diamond in the rough; if they can stay healthy and add a couple playmakers, this team could challenge for the AFC East division title.

This young team is a year older and wiser now, and will try to grow on the accomplishments of the ’09 season. Personally Gridiron Experts would like to see this pick used on the offensive side of the ball, and we’re sure fans would agree. Adding a WR that can stretch the field would be ideal for this running attack, yet the team has enough rookies, and leadership would be nice as well.

We think trading this pick to a team like Arizona for a smart, tough WR like Anquan Boldin would be a great move. At 29 the trade wouldn’t be pick for player, but if a mid round pick came with Boldin, the Dolphins would walk away happy. Gridiron Experts sees pick 12 the first traded away pick of the draft, either down to gain more picks, or to another team for a veteran leader. The Dolphins are already a young team and need to add talent and wisdom now.

13) San Francisco 49er’s Team Needs: OT | WR | SS | KR

The only thing the 49er’s need to do this offseason is cut Takeo Spikes. Why? Because the veteran linebacker is a playoff curse. In the 12 years that Takeo Spikes has been in the NFL he has never been a part of a team that has made the playoffs…wow!

The 49er’s don’t really have any massive needs on the team, despite what some may say about QB Alex Smith.

Alex Smith was solid down the stretch and should have done just enough to have earned another opportunity to start for the 49er’s next season. There is a chance that Smith could succeed and lead this team into the post season if a smart offensive system can be installed that this young club can get behind.  Keep in mind we’re being optimistic, as newly hired offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye II doesn’t come with an impressive resume. Raye has never run an offense that has ranked high in any category that mattered, and his hiring makes no sense in the direction the …Continue reading Team Needs Mock Draft (Part 2)

The Titans Secret Weapon?
The Houston Texans playoff hopes might have been squashed last night after another heartbreaking loss. Kicker Kris Brown miss another game tying field goal that would have sent the Texans into overtime, this time he was in his own house when he choked. The Titans got a few favorable calls on the last drive of the game, including a phantom horse-collar call that turned a loss on the play into a 15 yard first down. Overall I think it came down to the Texans not being able to stop VY, but the refs did make a few bad calls that might have given the Titans a small edge. Either way, this video will piss off any Texans fan.

Texans to the Playoffs?

The Houston Texans are one of the up and comers in the NFL this year. Defined by a high flying offense led by Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson, this team has the potential to outscore most teams on the journey to their first ever playoff in their brief existence (2002). The AFC is highly competitive this season, with many strong teams boasting better records than the 5-4 Texans, but at this point the Texans have what it takes to battle their way into one of six AFC playoff positions by continuing to win football games.

One can’t say enough about the 2009 Houston Texans. They are performing at a very high standard as we all saw last week when they nearly defeated the undefeated Colts. Matt Schaub is leading the league in passing yardage this season (2,653) and is tied with Drew Brees for the lead in touchdowns thrown (17).  Andre Johnson is up to his usual leading the league in reception yards with 800, and throw in a duo of more than talented running backs in Steve Slaton and Ryan Moats who have been proving that they too can shoulder the load.

Now the playoff crunch is on. Every win or loss is crucial if the Texans  want to solidify a spot. So will they make the playoffs for the first time in franchise history? Or will it just be another let down for the fans in Houston? The answer is not too far away.

In the remaining 7 games the Texans seem likely to pull off a minimum of three wins:

@ Jacksonville, vs. Seattle, and vs. St.Louis. They also face some tough sledding this winter: vs. Tennessee (who is not so terrible with VY at the helm), vs. Indianapolis, @ Miami, and vs. New England. Doing some quick math, if the Texans win their three “gimme’s”, and are able to split the difficult games, they will go 5-2, leaving them with a final record of 10-6 which may just squeak them into the wildcard position within this highly competitive division. These projections may be optimistic. Based on the Texans current success, the Texans should be battling with the Chargers (5-3), the Ravens (4-4), and the Jets (4-4) for that coveted wildcard spot.

Sticking my neck out, I am going to have to pre-eminently congratulate Houston, as I have to predict that the Texans are going to make it into this year’s playoff. I see the AFC shaping out seeded as so: 1.Colts, 2.Patriots, 3.Steelers, 4.Bengals, 5.Broncos, 6.Texans. The Chargers will be battling with the Texans for this last wildcard spot, but a weaker schedule falls into the hands of the Texans, and hence it looks like they will finally be feeling the sweet caress of the NFL playoffs.

NFL Preview – Is This The Year For The Texans Breakout?

There is a lot of optimism buzzing around Reliant Stadium in Houston but there is also a lot of pressure. Both head coach Gary Kubiak and quarterback Matt Schaub know that if they can’t put everything together, then they could both be looking for work elsewhere in 2010.

With the glass-half-full approach, the Texans have one of the most explosive offenses in the league and a solid young defense that is developing. With the glass-half-empty approach, the Texans have been injury-prone and haven’t performed well under pressure. The NFL odds makers are cautiously optimistic that it’s the former.

The good news for fantasy players is that the Texans are loaded with fantasy football riches and whether they win or not in real life, you’ll want to pay close attention to many of their players as draft day approaches.

Offseason Transactions

The Houston Texans had a relatively quiet offseason as far as transactions go, which is a good thing.

The Texans roster is talented but and it just needed some supplements.

First-round pick Brian Cushing is going to solidify an up-and-coming linebacking corps whilethe signing of defensive end Antonio Smith might cost the Texans more than they would like, at least he brings some needed experience.

…Continue reading Houston Texans 2009 Preview

Team Needs: Houston Texans

Gridiron Experts is randomly picking NFL teams to evaluate their off-season acquisitions. We are predicting their game plan heading into the NFL Draft, using last year’s stats as a guide for improvement.


The Houston Texans were supposed to make their playoff debut in 2008. The team had made huge strides in the last few seasons, establishing an identity as a young, talented team that no one should take lightly. Unfortunately the season started off on the wrong foot, after a loss to the Steelers, and hurricane Ike hitting Reliant Stadium hard, the Texans were 0-4 before they could blink. Despite the bad start, the Texans finished the season 8-8, winning 5 of their last 6 games, an accomplishment that Houston should use as motivation.


Free agency was short and sweet for the Texans, signing DE Antonio Smith to a 5 year $35 million dollar deal. The Texans now have an excellent compliment to Mario Williams, and should create hell for opposing quarterbacks. As of now the Texans haven’t locked up their franchise player Dunta Robinson, or restricted player Owen Daniels, but deals are in the works.



Last season the Texans offense ranked high in many categories, including total passing yards per game. Their defense was banged up all season, resulting in many rookies stepping up into starting roles. With the addition of Antonio Smith, and with Dunta Robinson back healthy, the Texans defense should be able to bail out their offense more often, avoiding the countless shootouts they had in ’08. Gridiron Experts can see Houston adding another corner or safety in the first round, but the addition of a power running back might be the missing link to help grind out games in the second half. At pick 15, the Texans are in a perfect position to sit and wait. With CB’s like Malcolm Jenkins or Vonte Davis falling to them, draft day might be an easy one for the Texans. Although Ohio State’s RB Chris “Beanie” Wells should also be on the board at 15, and seeing how RB Ahman Green was a bust, the sexy pick might be temping. The Texans still have running back Steve Slaton, but there’s no proof he can handle a seasons worth of carries. If any one of these three players are waiting there at 15th overall, the Texans should come away laughing.