No team nails every pick in the draft. Even Nick Caserio says making a pick is a 50-50 proposition.
As such, it is only natural to conclude the Houston Texans had a selection that was entirely head-scratching to everyone outside the organization.
According to Josh Edwards from CBS Sports, the Texans’ “most questionable” pick from the three-day event at the end of April was the selection of former Penn State center Juice Scruggs.
The Texans have had a clear objective over the past two years. They locked up offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, then drafted edge rusher Will Anderson Jr., offensive guard Kenyon Green and Scruggs. It is obvious that they are placing an emphasis on getting more physical at the point of contact so it is easily understood why they were drawn to adding an interior lineman. However, Scruggs was lower on my personal board.
There were other aspects of the Scruggs selection that would have qualified as questionable more so than their rank on a draft analyst’s big board.
Firstly, the Texans did not possess a Round 2 selection to start Day 2 thanks to the trade with the Arizona Cardinals to take Anderson. Houston traded up to take Scruggs No. 62 overall because they wanted a younger option to compete with veterans Michael Deiter, Jimmy Morrissey, and Scott Quessenberry.
Secondly, even though the Texans already made a move to shore up their center position, and complimented Scruggs for his position flex along the interior, Houston went ahead and essentially duplicated the pick in Round 6 at No. 201 overall with the Jarrett Patterson selection. The 6-5, 306-pounder played center at Notre Dame.
Center was a position the Texans needed to address in the draft. Their redundant methods may be more questionable than the actual picks.
