Moss pays visit, leaves mark on receiving corps
Texans coach Bill O’Brien worked with Randy Moss when they were both with the New England Patriots, so O’Brien decided to tap the six-time Pro Bowl receiver as a resource — and a source of inspiration for his team’s young receiving corps. Moss agreed to fly to Houston to impart a little wisdom, although he opted not to share the same with the media, declining interview requests after attending the team’s training-camp practice Tuesday morning.
“Obviously the talent speaks for itself, but one of the things that always impressed me about him was his knowledge, his knowledge of coverages, his knowledge of different DB’s,” O’Brien said of Moss, who caught 982 career passes for 15,292 yards and 156 touchdowns and retired after the 2012 season with the San Francisco 49ers. “He really brought a lot to the table last night for our team and for our receivers. It was good to have him.”
Moss spoke about “dedication to the game, how important the game was to him, how much it meant to him, how much he misses it, how much he misses the locker room and the camaraderie. He talked about, ‘How are you adding value to this football team, doing your job, performing your role to the highest level?’ ”
Moss and DeAndre Hopkins walked off the field together following the workout, with Hopkins seemingly hanging on his every word. Earlier, Moss fielded a pass from third-year quarterback Tom Savage, who admitted being “kind of star-struck. I grabbed a ball, and he wanted to catch (it) and I was like, ‘Really?’ I threw him one ball and I was . . . ‘Oh God, I’m not going to try to break his finger.’ ”
Free-agent rookie Wendall Williams said of Moss’ visit, “He’s the GOAT (greatest of all time), man. It’s humbling. When I heard he was coming in, I was speechless at first. Coming from a small school (University of Cumberland), I don’t really get to be around a lot of big-time names. I’m not really used to it. I took it all in. I’m very excited to meet him and listen to him.”
Williams anguished over whether he should ask Moss for an autograph, but he finally decided against it. “I have to resist,” he said. “I have to. I don’t want him to leave without me asking, but I don’t think I’m going to.”
Interestingly, Moss and O’Brien seemingly didn’t part on good terms with New England six seasons ago. They had a blowout argument during halftime of a Miami game in 2010, and a few days later, Moss was traded to the Minnesota Vikings.
Brandt sees improvement
Also visiting the Texans’ practice Tuesday was one-time Dallas Cowboys personnel director Gil Brandt, representing SiriusXM NFL Radio. Brandt’s take on the revamped Texans?
“I think this team improved a great deal,” he said. “I told coach (Bill) O’Brien at Baylor’s Pro Day, ‘They ought to put you in jail for stealing those two players.’ In (running back Lamar) Miller, they got a really good running back. In (quarterback Brock) Osweiler, they got a potential down-the-road, playoff, Pro Bowl-type of quarterback. They’ve done a good job putting this team together with solid players, and you got a punter like Shane Lechler who never gets old. I like what I’ve seen from them.”
Brandt was likewise impressed with speedy new receivers Will Fuller and Braxton Miller, and he’s also a fan of fleet-footed rookie running back Tyler Ervin.
“At Notre Dame, Fuller dropped some passes, but you can teach him to catch better,” Brandt said. “You can’t teach him to run faster. They added a lot of speed to their team, and athleticism. I think Ervin, the San Jose State player, is a real kind of hidden gem.”
Osweiler not getting respect
Gil Brandt’s praise notwithstanding, ESPN’s newly released NFL QB Tier rankings don’t show Brock Osweiler much love. A panel of 42 league insiders — 10 general managers, five head coaches, seven offensive coordinators, five defensive coordinators, eight personnel evaluators and seven other position coaches/executives — rated him 27th among 33 quarterbacks, falling under Tier 3, defined as: “Legit starter but needs heavy run game/defense to win.”
“I wouldn’t have minded if he stayed in Denver,” a head coach whose team faces Osweiler’s old Denver squad this season told ESPN. “If he was any good, they would not have let him go. That is one position, especially if your general manager is a quarterback, you don’t let that guy go if he is good.”
A personnel director called Osweiler “a leader type, but he is not an innate leader. Some of it is manufactured. He has to grow into a leader. He will talk and do all that stuff, but it is not as natural as it is with some of the other guys. I think that can backfire on you, especially when you are faced with adversity.”
Meanwhile, another personnel director said, “If they try to put the game on his shoulders, I think he is not the type of quarterback who is going to win it for you. Is he a $17 million quarterback? Well, that’s what the market says he was. That will put a lot of pressure on him to perform, and I’d be a little leery of that.”
O’Brien quiet on Clowney’s status
Outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney, plagued by injuries during his first two NFL seasons, missed his third consecutive day of practice Tuesday morning. However, Bill O’Brien insisted it’s not an ominous development.
“Just giving him a couple of days off,” said O’Brien while declining to specify what’s preventing Clowney from practicing. “I wouldn’t make too much of it.”
Clowney has a history of knee problems, having undergone meniscus and microfracture knee surgery as a rookie, and then dealt with foot and lowerback issues last season. Sources with knowledge of the situation, who aren’t authorized to speak publicly, reiterated what O’Brien said: The former South Carolina star is being given a few days off and “everything is OK.”
Hoping to stay healthier, he had gotten down to 265 pounds after playing at 284 pounds last season.
Return team gets a little ‘juice’
The Texans’ return game has generated barely any buzz of late, but coach Bill O’Brien believes the infusion of speed at wide receiver and running back should help upgrade the special teams in question.
Running back Tyler Ervin returned three kickoffs for touchdowns in college and is his school’s all-time record holder for kickoff return yardage as well as combined kickoffs and punts returned for scores, with five. Receiver Wendall Williams has 4.32 speed in the 40-yard dash and returned four kickoffs and one punt for touchdowns in two college seasons.
“Right now, I feel really good,” O’Brien said. “I’m telling you, I think these guys can field the ball pretty cleanly. Even (Braxton)Miller, who doesn’t have much experience returning, having been Ohio State’s quarterback until his final season there), is getting better at it. Then, they have juice, they have speed, they have quickness, they have good vision. I’m really excited to see what each one of these guys does in the preseason game when the bullets are flying.”