Texans General Manager Rick Smith knows who he wants to select with the first overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft. Unless some team offers him a package of picks that he wants even more.
“I absolutely know who I want,” Smith told FOX Sports Southwest. “I know the guys we like. The fortunate thing about having the first pick is I’ve got the pick of the litter, so I will know exactly who I want at that point.”
Most people seem to think the player Smith wants is South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, but there are those who think he wants Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel, Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles or Buffalo linebacker Kahlil Mack. The question is whether, at some point in the next week, some team will bowl Smith over with an offer that makes Smith move down.
“Now where the game is played is if there’s an opportunity to move and, in this case, obviously to move back if somebody else wants to come up to that first pick,” Smith said. “Then you weigh what the opportunities are versus who the individual is that you want to take and what that value is relative to the value that somebody might be offering you. But as you move through the draft, obviously you don’t know who’s going to be picked when.”
There will probably be some team that loves Clowney enough to give the Texans a good deal to move up to No. 1. Smith may end up with the player he wants, and some extra picks as well.