2015 NFL Draft, Grading AFC South Picks: Kevin Johnson

Kevin Johnson comes to the Houston Texans to help them compete against Andrew Luck, Blake Bortles, and now Marcus Mariota. Those are three young, talented quarterbacks that J.J. Watt needs help stopping so the Texans decided to lock down the secondary with the second defensive back taken off the board.

If I’m the Houston Texans and I’m looking at the draft and know there are three quality QBs in my division and no good QBs to be had in the rest of the draft, I focus on defense. That’s the smart play and I think it was a wise move.

While Johnson wasn’t the highest defensive back left according to my own assessment, the Texans obviously felt that he can come in and immediately help their secondary. Mike Mayock noted that some coaches across the NFL believe Johnson is the “cleanest” defensive back in the 2015 NFL Draft. That’s something to feel comfortable about.

A-. . CB. Wake Forest. KEVIN JOHNSON

This pick is the one I’m highest on for the AFC South. The Texans saw their competition and said, “bring it on” with this pick. They know the strength of their team is its defense and its running game, so bringing in another surefire top corner is going to help immediately. They have six games each year against talented quarterbacks plus a host of games against QBs that aren’t slouches either. It’s a passing league and the way to stop passing is with a pass rush and good coverage. They already have the pass rush and decent coverage. Now they have an excellent coverage back to go with the rest of their secondary. This was a prudent move and it will pay dividends in the future. It’s not a good move for the Jaguars, Titans, or Colts, but it’s Houston’s job to make sure they can still compete even when they don’t have a true franchise QB under center.

Next: Grading Marcus Mariota

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