LOVIE TIPPING HIS HAND?
9 important Houston Texans takeaways from Lovie Smith's Combine presser
Mar 2, 2022, 4:07 pm
Texans head coach Lovie Smith spoke at the NFL Combine on Wednesday, and discussed the defense, Davis Mills, the Deshaun Watson situation, and much more. Be sure to check out the video above to watch the entire press conference. Here are my quick takeaways from Lovie's comments.
1. When asked about Davis Mills, Smith said starting jobs aren't given out in the offseason. But he also talked about Mills' intelligence, and how he played as well as most of the rookie QBs last season. He also thought it was important to bring back Pep Hamilton, so he can continue to work with Mills.
2. Lovie shared some thoughts on this year's draft class, and he sees a lot of talent on the defensive line. He said that the Texans have a "defensive line-friendly system," and if he was a defensive end, he would want to play in the Texans scheme. Defensive line is considered one of the strengths of this year's draft class, so don't be surprised if the Texans draft a pass rusher if they stay at No. 3 overall. Lovie discussed pass rush and defensive ends in his scheme quite a bit. You have to wonder if improving the pass rush is his top priority. He might be tipping his hand here, or it could be another smoke screen. He did say the Texans might take a QB at No. 3 overall last week, when we know that's not likely. Smith just wants other teams to believe they might draft a QB for leverage.
3. Don't shut the door on safety Justin Reid returning to the Texans. Smith called Reid an "outstanding player" and said the team would be pretty happy if they were able to retain him. Smith went on to say Reid is a detail guy that fits their profile.
4. Lovie also spoke about the traits he looks for in a cornerback. Smith said a corner that's 6' tall and can run faster than most people, is important. He values ball skills and being a willing tackler.
5. There are several benefits of having Lovie as head coach this year. He spoke about his knowledge of the roster, the division, and how the Texans organization works. These are some things a coach being hired from outside the organization would not possess.
6. Tight end was a big topic of conversation again today. Smith spoke about the tight end position being a big part of what they want to do on offense. With only Brevin Jordan under contract, the Texans will look to add to the position. He doesn't consider Jordan to be an "ideal" in-line Y tight end, so look for them to address that position because he believes in multiple tight ends, and they view Jordan as more of a pass catcher. He also said the Texans want to be able to run the ball.
7. Of course, Lovie was asked about Deshaun Watson. Here's what he had to say. "Time kind of takes care of everything. I know Deshaun is an excellent football player. Excellent football players need to be playing somewhere in the NFL. Hopefully, that will happen and if it's not with us, somewhere else. As I see the situation, both of us are eventually gonna benefit from this situation. I just can't wait for that to speed up a little bit." Smith also mentioned he's a patient man.
8. Lovie Smith seems open to bringing back some players. He mentioned Maliek Collins, Christian Kirksey, and Kamu Grugier-Hill specifically.
9. Smith considers the NFL Combine to be important. Seems like an obvious statement, but this year the Rams GM and Head Coach decided not to attend the Combine. Smith also explained that his college coaching experience will come in handy because he recruited a lot of the prospects in this year's draft class.
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There was a conversation Cleveland guard Donovan Mitchell had during training camp, the topic being all the teams that were generating the most preseason buzz in the Eastern Conference. Boston was coming off an NBA championship. New York got Karl-Anthony Towns. Philadelphia added Paul George.
The Cavs? Not a big topic in early October. And Mitchell fully understood why.
“What have we done?” Mitchell asked. “They don't talk about us. That's fine. We'll just hold ourselves to our standard.”
That approach seems to be working.
For the first time in 36 seasons — yes, even before the LeBron James eras in Cleveland — the Cavaliers are atop the NBA at the 25-game mark. They're 21-4, having come back to earth a bit following a 15-0 start but still better than anyone in the league at this point.
“We've kept our standards pretty high,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said. “And we keep it going.”
The Cavs are just one of the surprise stories that have emerged as the season nears the one-third-done mark. Orlando — the only team still unbeaten at home — is off to its best start in 16 years at 17-9 and having done most of that without All-Star forward Paolo Banchero. And Houston is 16-8, behind only the Cavs, Boston, Oklahoma City and Memphis so far in the race for the league's best record.
Cleveland was a playoff team a year ago, as was Orlando. And the Rockets planted seeds for improvement last year as well; an 11-game winning streak late in the season fueled a push where they finished 41-41 in a major step forward after a few years of rebuilding.
“We kind of set that foundation last year to compete with everybody,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “Obviously, we had some ups and downs with winning and losing streaks at times, but to finish the season the way we did, getting to .500, 11-game winning streak and some close losses against high-level playoff teams, I think we kind of proved that to ourselves last year that that's who we're going to be.”
A sign of the respect the Rockets are getting: Oddsmakers at BetMGM Scorebook have made them a favorite in 17 of 24 games so far this season, after favoring them only 30 times in 82 games last season.
“Based on coaches, players, GMs, people that we all know what they're saying, it seems like everybody else is taking notice as well,” Udoka said.
They're taking notice of Orlando as well. The Magic lost their best player and haven't skipped a beat.
Banchero's injury after five games figured to doom Orlando for a while, and the Magic went 0-4 immediately after he tore his oblique. Entering Tuesday, they're 14-3 since — and now have to regroup yet again. Franz Wagner stepped into the best-player-on-team role when Banchero got hurt, and now Wagner is going to miss several weeks with the exact same injury.
Ask Magic coach Jamahl Mosley how the team has persevered, and he'll quickly credit everyone but himself. Around the league, it's Mosley getting a ton of the credit — and rightly so — for what Orlando is doing.
“I think that has to do a lot with Mose. ... I have known him a long time,” Phoenix guard Bradley Beal said. “A huge fan of his and what he is doing. It is a testament to him and the way they’ve built this team.”
The Magic know better than most how good Cleveland is, and vice versa. The teams went seven games in an Eastern Conference first-round series last spring, the Cavs winning the finale at home to advance to Round 2.
Atkinson was brought in by Cleveland to try and turn good into great. The job isn't anywhere near finished — nobody is raising any banners for “best record after 25 games” — but Atkinson realized fairly early that this Cavs team has serious potential.
“We’re so caught up in like the process of improve, improve, improve each game, improve each practice," Atkinson said. “That’s kind of my philosophy. But then you hit 10-0, and obviously the media starts talking and all that, and you’re like, ‘Man, this could be something special brewing here.’”