!
Sometimes landing a big time free agent is a lot like what people say about buying a boat; you're happiest on the day you get one and the day you get rid of one.
Because the Texans have not yet brought in a headline-grabbing outsider since the league year began, some of you are growing impatient. I get it. Seeing some other teams apparently get stronger is making a lot of fans pile up my mailbox with concern that Houston didn't get the memo that the new NFL year is underway.
Note the word 'apparently' in the last sentence. Didn't Philly recently load up with "dream team" players only to see their plans squashed during the season? And San Francisco loaded up in the pre Harbaugh era without much to show for it. In fact, they've been winning lately with a core of players that were either on the roster or drafted after the current regime was put in place.
Even in Texans history, the splashy signing has sometimes produced mixed results. On the plus side, there's Antonio Smith, Johnathan Joseph and Danieal Manning. But they've seen celebrated signings not work out as well. Inking unrestricted free agents to solve roster issues is almost as inexact a science as the draft itself.
If there's anything to take away from what the Texans have (or haven't) done so far it's that they will do their best to not overpay for talent. They reinvested in Garrett Graham because they had a need at the position and they knew exactly what they were getting.
I understand your edginess. Until Thursday it was like watching the neighbors get their Christmas lights up and you still haven't made the trip to the hardware store. But it's all about taking the field September 7 with the best possible chance to win. Very often, moves that look pretty in March don't pan out well in the fall.
Let Rick Smith and Bill O'Brien play this one out. They have the first pick in every round of the draft. There might be deals to be made. And Smith and his staff have often been effective in getting a lot out of the second and final waves of free agency (Joe Mays, Bernard Pollard, etc). This thing is just getting started. There's no grade to give because the work's not done or even due yet.
