Tag: Gareon Conley

3 players the Falcons should consider trading for

With limited cap space, the Atlanta Falcons were forced to move on from six of last season’s starters, including their leading tackler, De’Vondre Campbell, and 2019 sack leader, Vic Beasley.

With limited cap space, the Atlanta Falcons were forced to move on from six of last season’s starters, including their leading tackler, De’Vondre Campbell, and 2019 sack leader, Vic Beasley.

The team filled most of its needs in the draft, but could still use some depth at a few positions, including linebacker, corner and tight end. Let’s examine three low-risk, high-reward options that Atlanta could potentially trade for without giving up too much.

LB Haason Reddick – Cardinals

(Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

2019 Stats: 73 tackles (40 solo), 1 sack, 6 passes defended

Adored by scouts leading up the 2017 NFL Draft, Haason Reddick’s role never materialized in Arizona and it’s still unclear where he is best suited to play. The Cardinals run a 3-4 defense and played Reddick at inside linebacker last season. He may be a better fit as an outside linebacker in a 4-3 defense, or simply as a situational pass-rusher.

Reddick’s speed, athleticism and instincts coming out of Temple had scouts projecting him as rangy middle linebacker in the NFL. He played more of an outside LB/EDGE role in college and a return to a similar role in Atlanta could help him maximize his unique skill-set. Since Arizona declined Reddick’s fifth-year option and drafted Isaiah Simmons, the team is clearly not sold on him long term. In exchange for a late-round pick, Reddick may be worth taking a chance on during a contract year with a lot to prove.

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Bill O’Brien is ‘really excited’ about the Texans’ secondary

Houston Texans coach and general manager Bill O’Brien has great enthusiasm about the team’s secondary heading into 2020.

Bill O’Brien’s overall thoughts on the Houston Texans’ secondary couldn’t be any clearer.

“I would say that I am really excited about the secondary,” O’Brien told Houston media on a conference call Thursday. “I think we have a very diverse secondary.”

The coach and general manager’s retooling of the secondary goes as far back as the end of the preseason in 2019 when the club was trimming down to a 53-man roster. With the philosophy of “versatility” in mind, the Texans added cornerback Keion Crossen in a trade with the New England Patriots on Aug. 31.

However, the additions didn’t stop there. Prior to the Texans’ Week 8 tilt with the Oakland Raiders, Houston traded with Oakland for former 2017 first-round cornerback Gareon Conley. The Texans picked up former 2016 first-rounder Vernon Hargreaves off waivers in November.

Hargreaves was released early in the 2020 offseason, but the Texans brought him back, as they did with Phillip Gaines and Bradley Roby.

Roby, a former 2014 first-round pick for the Denver Broncos, is another versatile cornerback that helps the Texans’ scheme.

“One of the things about Bradley Roby is the versatility that he brings, the ability to play outside, the ability to play inside, the ability to play a lot of different positions, play man-to-man, play zone,” said O’Brien.

One of the overlooked cornerbacks is Lonnie Johnson, who enters his second season after Houston took him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. The former Kentucky Wildcat has been keeping in touch with strength and conditioning coach Mike Eubanks as he seeks to take a developmental leap in 2020.

“He’s another guy when you ask about off-field workouts and things, he’s doing a great job working out and staying in touch with Mike Eubanks,” said O’Brien. “Expecting big things out of him.”

The versatility isn’t limited to the cornerbacks. O’Brien likes the versatile roles that the safeties may be able to play in first-year defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver’s scheme.

Said O’Brien: “If you look at the safety position, Justin Reid, Eric Murray, Jaylen Watkins, A.J. Moore, just a real diverse group of guys. You know, Eric Murray played corner. Jaylen Watkins has played nickel. They’re not just safeties.”

Coverage and pass rush are intertwined aspects of a defense that feed off of one another. If the Texans’ coverage can improve, then the Texans ought to be able to improve upon their 31 sacks from 2019, tied with the Cincinnati Bengals for the sixth-fewest in the NFL.

Report: Texans CB Gareon Conley has screw removed from ankle

Houston Texans cornerback Gareon Conley had a screw removed from his right ankle, according to the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson.

Houston Texans cornerback Gareon Conley has had a screw removed as part of a minor offseason procedure.

According to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, the former Oakland Raiders defensive back had a screw removed from his right ankle. Conley is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the Texans’ offseason workout program, which starts in April.

The former 2017 first-round pick from Ohio State was acquired by the Texans as part of a trade with the Raiders that was coincidentally ahead of the two sides’ Week 8 matchup at NRG Stadium. The Texans were desperate for cornerback help as starters Johnathan Joseph and Bradley Roby were battling hamstring injuries and rookie Lonnie Johnson sustained a concussion the week prior in a 30-23 loss at the Indianapolis Colts.

Conley produced 27 tackles and 11 pass breakups in eight games with Houston, six of which he started. In the playoffs, Conley played 149 snaps for the Texans, representing their entire defensive plays for the postseason. The 6-0, 190-pound corner collected 11 tackles, 1.0 sack, one tackle for loss, and three pass breakups.

DC Romeo Crennel: CB Gareon Conley has ‘done a nice job’ for Texans

Houston Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel thinks cornerback Gareon Conley has done a nice job since his trade from the Oakland Raiders.

Oct. 21, the Houston Texans risked it. In trading a third-round selection to the Oakland Raiders for 2017 first-round pick Gareon Conley, Houston banked on the Ohio State product’s potential over his production.

Conley has played seven games for the Texans since the trade. Houston’s defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel likes what he sees.

“I thought he did all right,” Crennel said on Thursday in response to his expanded playing time. “He’s done a nice job for us. I feel good about him.”

The Texans are tinkering with their cornerback lineup heading into the postseason. It appears Conley will act as a starter in a group that tends to rotate play himself, Bradley Roby, Vernon Hargreave and Johnathan Joseph.

According to Pro Football Reference, Conley is allowing a 92.4 passer rating in coverage in Houston, as compared to 130.6 in Oakland in 2019. On the year, with the Texans, he has 22 combined tackles and nine pass deflections.

Is Texans CB Johnathan Joseph heading for a career change?

With father time laying the inevitable double move on Houston Texans CB Johanthan Joseph, is it time for the Pro Bowler to look for a career change?

There is no joy in saying Johnathan Joseph is getting old.

The two-time Pro Bowler is a stalwart of this Houston Texans defense and essentially another coach on the field for this young unit, but while the 35-year-old former Cincinnati Bengal is continuing to deliver on the field despite father time, his age seems to be catching up with him.

Since the arrivals of former first-round cornerbacks Gareon Conley and Vernon Hargreaves earlier this season, Joseph’s playing time has been declining especially of late. Throw into the mix rookie Lonnie Johnson and former Denver Bronco Bradley Roby, and suddenly the future for Joseph as a starter in this Texans defense looks less likely.

A consummate professional and consistency embodied, Joseph still has 13 defended passes and an interception on the year despite his age. And while he logged both an interception and a defended pass during their recent 23-20 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, these came during just six defensive snaps in total for the night, a decline which has been rapid the prevailing trend the latter half of this season.

Having started just 10 games so far this season and with a Pro Football Focus grade of 64.7, both categories reflect new lows for the Texans captain since just his third NFL season way back in 2008.

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DC Romeo Crennel: Texans’ rotation of cornerbacks helps evaluation

Recently, the Houston Texans have rotated through five different cornerbacks. Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel says it helps their evaluations.

The Houston Texans have a problem. They can’t decide who they want to play at cornerback.

Since March, Houston has added three former first-round cornerbacks to the roster, in Bradley Roby (2015), Vernon Hargreaves (2016) and Gareon Conley (2017). They did so while retaining long-time starter Johnathan Joseph and drafted Lonnie Johnson in the second round.

When all are healthy, the Texans don’t know who to play. Last week, in a 38-24 loss to the Denver Broncos, Houston rotated through the five aforementioned, with Roby seeing the most snaps at 76% (45). That was the plan.

“We planned to rotate a little bit,” said defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel on Thursday. “We have more corners that can play now than we’ve ever had before since I’ve been here. So, we wanted to get everybody a little taste to see what they can do.”

As Crennel alludes to, the Texans feel as if they have an abundance of talent in their cornerback room. They have their best in franchise history in Joseph, a lockdown slot defender in Roby, a promising rookie in Johnson and two former highly-touted recruits in Conley and Hargreaves, who are each 24 years old.

Rotating will help evaluate who they want in the now and future.

“I think that helps our evaluation, that helps the competition in the room, and then we can stay a little bit fresher as well,” said Crennel.

According to Pro Football Reference, Roby leads the bunch in coverage, as he allows a 77.7 passer rating when targeted. Joseph is second with a 101.7. Conley is third with a 105.6. Johnson and Hargreaves round out the bunch with a 107.5 and 116.5, respectively.

With three weeks left in the season, expect the Texans to rotate through cornerbacks less as they figure out a combination that will suit their needs. Of course, they will have to get to the postseason first, which they can do by winning two out of the next three.

Texans credit system versatility for fitting in new cornerbacks

Houston Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel cites versatility as a defense for letting Gareon Conley and Vernon Hargreaves fit in.

In Week 1, the Houston Texans’ secondary lacked two prominent names currently in their Week 14 roster, Gareon Conley and Vernon Hargreaves.

Both first-round picks, Conley (2017) and Hargreaves (2016) were discarded by their old teams — the Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, respectively — and found themselves in Houston shortly after, via trade and release, respectively.

The Texans’ schematic versatility has allowed each to see consistent playing time with their new team.

“I’m not sure because I haven’t studied them that much in the systems they were in, but I think that the versatility of our system helps them because we do a couple of different things and put them in a couple of different positions. So, I think that has helped them perform,” said Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel on Thursday.

Before rushing both into the system, Crennel had to experiment with them in practice to prep them for the Texans’ defense.

“Probably a little bit more in practice than in the game,” said Crennel. “You look at them and see if they’re better press man, off man, zone guys, and what can they do. As you get a feel for what they can do, then you can ask them to do more, and particularly as they learn the system and understand what’s required from the position by the defensive call. Then when they have success, you feel good about it and you keep calling it.”

Conley and Hargreaves had made plays for the Texans defense.

In four games, Conley, an Ohio State product, has 14 combined tackles and six pass deflections while allowing a 50% completion rate when targeted, per Pro Football Reference.

Meanwhile, Hargreaves, a Florida product, is adjusting to a position change from outside cornerback to inside cornerback. In doing so, he has 11 combined tackles and two pass deflections.

Conley and Hargreaves are playing to stay in Houston. Crennel’s flexibility and versatility as a defensive mind could pay dividends in their efforts to do so.

CB Gareon Conley ‘trending in right direction’ for the Texans

The Houston Texans did not see their starting cornerback Gareon Conley play in Week 13’s win over the Patriots. He could be back against the Broncos.

The Houston Texans secondary was nearly complete for their win over the New England Patriots. While cornerback Bradley Roby returned, fellow cornerback Gareon Conley was inactive for the first time in his Texans tenure.

The former 2017 Oakland Raiders first-round pick was a limited participant in all three practices leading up to the 28-22 win over the Patriots with a hip injury.

However, Conley could be back on board to play in Week 14’s bout with the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

“I think Conley is trending in the right direction,” said coach Bill O’Brien on Monday. “We felt like it was in his best interest for him to be inactive last night and to try to continue to get better health-wise.”

The Texans won’t unveil an official injury report for Conley until Wednesday’s practices are over with. His status for the game will be more definite on Friday.

Houston traded for Conley before the trade deadline, sending a third-round selection to the Oakland Raiders. In four games (all starts) with the Texans, the 2017 first-round pick has allowed a 104.4 passer rating in coverage, per Pro Football Reference.

Texans’ rebuilt secondary impresses in 20-17 win against the Colts

The Houston Texans’ rebuilt secondary, with Gareon Conley and Vernon Hargreaves, impressed in a win over the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday.

With safety Justin Reid (concussion/shoulder), cornerback Bradley Roby (hamstring) and cornerback Lonnie Johnson (concussion) out, the Houston Texans entered Thursday night’s match with the Indianapolis Colts carrying a secondary missing integral pieces across the board.

That didn’t seem to matter.

The Texans defense held quarterback Jacoby Brissett to 129 passing yards and no touchdowns en route to a 20-17 win. The secondary — after allowing 326 yards and four touchdowns to Brissett in Week 7 — held their own.

Brissett finished with a 76.9 passer rating while completing 16 of his 25 attempts for an average of 5.2 yards per. Most of those yards did not come while attacking the secondary. 12 completions and 99 yards came by way of tight ends and running backs.

“They gave up some yards here and there, but at the end of the day they got lined up and they played the next play,” said coach Bill O’Brien after the game while emphasizing the “next-play mentality” and communication as reasons for the secondary’s good play.

While limiting Brissett to a game to forget, the Texans also accomplished the rare feat of containing wide-out T.Y. Hilton. Hilton, otherwise known as “Texans-killer,” brought in three of his six targets for 18 yards.

The difference between Week 7 and 12 secondaries (other than injuries)? Fresh faces. Former first-round picks Gareon Conley and Vernon Hargreaves are now in the mix in Houston, with both seeing snaps on the aforementioned Hilton.

Conley was invisible on Thursday — a compliment. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman were unable to call his name, as he did not allow lapses in coverage worth noting. Like offensive linemen, if a cornerback isn’t drawing attention, that’s a good thing. Conley did not draw attention.

“His play has been speaking volumes for us,” said cornerback Johnathan Joseph while comparing Conley to former second-team All-Pro Leon Hall postgame, via SportsRadio 610.

Meanwhile, Hargreaves showed promise in his debut with the Texans, tallying five combined tackles and a pass breakup. He did so all while starting in the slot, a relatively new position for the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer.

“We added Vernon Hargreaves a couple weeks ago,” said O’Brien. “He was able to come in and do some things tonight.”

The Texans’ secondary stepped up amid injuries across the board. Next week, against the New England Patriots, they can build momentum with Reid, Roby and Johnson in-line to return to action.

Why are the Texans taking chances on former first-round cornerbacks?

The Houston Texans have acquired former first-round cornerbacks since the opening of free agency. What goes into their decisions?

The Houston Texans have added three former first-round cornerbacks on their roster in Bradley Roby, Gareon Conley, and Vernon Hargreaves. The first was a free agent signing in March, the second a midseason trade, and the third a waiver claim.

Coach Bill O’Brien provided reasons Friday as to why he thinks the Texans are the perfect organization to get the most out of top tier picks who weren’t so stellar with their original draft teams.

“I think part of it is what we’ve seen on film, how we feel like their skill set can fit with what we do, what we know about them relative to Gareon or Vernon or some of the guys that we brought in that we studied in the draft, Laremy Tunsil, Kenny Stills, when they were coming out,” O’Brien said.

The Texans simply don’t look at the talent and follow through with the glint in their eye developed from watching highlights. The Houston personnel and scouting department goes through extensive homework and coordinates with the coaching staff to determine if the players would finally breakout with the Texans or if they’re truly busts.

“We do have a background with them,” said O’Brien. “We look at a lot of different data points. We look at a lot of different contractual situations, situations relative to where they are in their contract relative to are they still on their rookie deal, is it something where you’re just bringing a guy in for basically six games, do you want to do that, do you not want to do that.”

Ultimately, the Texans seek to make decisions that benefit the club, not add another collection to their cabinet of former college standouts.

“I don’t think it’s anything other than we feel like this guy could fit for our team, is this a good decision for our team, and if we believe it is — the consensus is it is — then we try to execute the deal.”