The Texans loaded up on defense early in the 2011 NFL Draft and they also found their starting playoff QB in the 5th round in T.J. Yates. Here is a look at how the rookies did in 2011:

22-year old DE J.J. Watt was the Texans’ first round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. Watt played in all 16 games and he finished up with 56 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 9 tackles for a loss, 2 fumble recoveries and 4 passes defensed. He has a HUGE upside for the Texans.

24-year old OLB Brooks Reed was the Texans’ second round pick last April. He played in all 16 games for the Texans this year and he had 45 tackles, 6 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 fumble recoveries and 3 passes defensed. Like Watt, Reed has a huge upside.

21-year old CB Brandon Harris was also a 2nd round pick of the Texans. Harris played in 7 games and he had 3 whopping tackles. Maybe he will be better in his second season in 2012 for the Texans.

23-year old CB Rashad “Roc” Carmichael was a 4th round pick by the Texans last April. He missed his entire rookie season due to a shoulder injury.

24-year old safety Shiloh Keo was picked in the 5th round by the Texans. He played in 10 games for the Texans last year and he had 4 tackles. He also returned 1 punt for 11 yards. Keo does most of his work on special teams.

24-year old QB T.J. Yates came to the Texans in the 5th round. Yates played in 6 games for the Texans during the regular season and he completed 82 of 134 passes (61.2%) for 949 yards with 3 TD passes and 3 INTs (80.7 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 14 times for 57 yards (4.1 ypc) for the Texans last year.

24-year old OT Derek Newton was a 7th round pick of the Texans last April. He played in 14 games (0 starts) for the Texans last year. Newton looks like a keeper for the Texans.

23-year old OLB Cheta Ozougwa was also picked in the 7th round by the Texans last April. He did not play in any games as a rookie.

GRADE FOR 2011: A+

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE: A+

The Texans took the shackles off 24-year old rookie QB T.J. Yates last weekend and he played well against the Bengals, leading his team to a 20-19 win.  Yates completed 26 of 44 passes (59.1%) for 300 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 interception.  He has now played in 3 games for the Texans so far this year and he has completed 46 of 84 passes (54.8%) for 558 yards with 3 TD passes and 1 INT (82.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 11 times for 43 yards (3.9 ypc) so far this year.  The Texans seem to be gaining more trust in Yates and that is a good thing moving forward.

The Houston Texans came into the NFL Draft wanting to reload on defense and they did a good job of it.  In the first two rounds, the Texans picked DE J.J. Watt, OLB Brooks Reed and CB Brandon Harris and they should be all starters from Day #1 in 2011.  CB Rashad Carmichael and safety Shiloh Keo will also bolster the secondary and the Texans need all of the help they can get there.  QB T.J. Yates gives the Texans a nice developmental QB that they can bring along slowly.  I really think the Texans had a nice draft as they have improved the defense quite a bit.

PROJECTED GRADE:  B+

The Houston Texans took 22-year old DE/OLB Cheta Ozougwu out of Rice with the 255th overall pick (7th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Ozougwu is 6’1″, 251 pounds and he runs a 4.8 40.  He is too small to play DE and he’s not athletic enough to play linebacker.  But, Ozougwu always gives a good effort as his motor always seems to run hot.  He played in 12 games (all starts) at Rice last year and he had 54 tackles, 6 tackles for a loss, 3 sacks, he batted down 2 passes and he forced 3 fumbles.  He played in 46 games (44 starts) in his four years at Rice and he had 198 tackles, 25 tackles for a loss, 11 sacks, he batted down 5 balls, had 4 forced fumbles and he recovered 1 fumble.  For being “Mr. Irrelevant” as the last pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, Ozougwu was a pretty productive college player.

The Houston Texans selected OT Derek Newton out of Arkansas State with the 214th overall pick (7th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Newton is a big guy at 6’6″, 314 pounds.  Despite his size, Newton is much more of a zone blocking type player which just so happens to be the Texans’ style of offense.  He started at 24 games at RT during his time at Arkansas State (2 years).  This was a good pick for the Texans as they might be able to coach up Newton who already fits their style of play.

The Houston Texans selected 24-year old QB T.J. Yates out of North Carolina with the 152nd overall pick (5th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Yates is 6’2″, 210 pounds and he runs a 4.9 40.  He is a dink and dunk type of passer as he doesn’t have the kind of arm to pound the ball down the field.  He played in 13 games (all starts) at North Carolina last year and he completed 282 of 422 passes (66.8%) for 3,418 yards with 19 TD passes and 9 INTs.  He played in 45 games (44 starts) in his four years with the Tar Heels and he completed 795 of 1,277 passes (62.3%) for 9,377 yards with 58 TD passes and 46 INTs.  This was a good pick for the Texans as they will likely be able to take their time and develop him as he will be #3 on the depth chart when the 2011 season begins.

The Texans selected 23-year old safety Shiloh Keo out of Idaho with the 144th overall pick (5th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Keo is 5’11″, 223 pounds and he runs a 4.65 40.  Keo is a strong safety as he likes the ball in front of him.  He delivers big hits and he’s a pretty sure tackler.  Keo also is great in pursuit.  Keo sometimes gets faked out by QBs and he sometimes doesn’t diagnose plays in time.  Keo played in 13 games (12 starts) at Idaho last year and he had 61 tackles, broke up 5 passes, had 3 interceptions, forced 2 fumbles and he recovered 2 fumbles.  He played in 54 games (50 starts) in his four years at Idaho and he had 358 tackles, broke up 20 passes, had 11 interceptions, forced 3 fumbles and he recovered 6 fumbles.  Keo also returned 53 punts for 585 yards (11.1 avg) at Idaho.  This was a solid pick for the Texans as Keo brings an intimidation factor to the D while also being able to help out on special teams.

The Texans have picked 23-year old CB Rashad Carmichael out of Virginia Tech with the 127th overall pick (4th round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Carmichael is 5’9″, 185 pounds and he runs a 4.47 40.  Carmichael plays the game hard and fast.  He doesn’t go for the big hit as he sometimes shies away from contact.  He also need to improve on his ball skills a little bit down the field.  Carmichael played in 13 games (12 starts) for Virginia Tech last year and he had 40 tackles, broke up 7 passes and he had 4 interceptions.  Carmichael played in 54 games (26 starts) in his four years with the Hokies and he had 115 tackles, he broke up 16 passes and he had 10 interceptions.  The Texans really need help at corner and Carmichael has a nice upside, so this was a nice pick for them.

UPDATE:  (9/17/2011) – The Texans have placed Rashad Carmichael on I.R., ending his rookie season without him getting into any games.  He has a shoulder injury.

The Houston Texans took 21-year old cornerback Brandon Harris out of Miami (FL) with the 60th overall pick (2nd round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Harris is 5’11″, 195 pounds and he runs a 4.4 40, so he measures out well.  He is a good corner for run support and he makes a lot of plays on the ball (but he doesn’t catch many of them).  Harris played in 13 games (all starts) at Miami (FL) last year and he had 44 tackles, broke up 10 passes, had 1 interception and he forced 2 fumbles.  He played in 39 games (32 starts) in his three years with the Hurricanes and he had 132 tackles, broke up 28 passes, had 4 interceptions and he forced 5 fumbles.  Harris fills a big need for the Texans and they got value with this pick as they thought he would be long gone by #60.

The Houston Texans have selected 24-year old OLB Brooks Reed out of Arizona with the 42nd overall pick (2nd round) of the 2011 NFL Draft.  Reed is 6’2″, 255 pounds and he runs a 4.85 40, so he’s a pretty good athlete.  He played in 13 games (all starts) for Arizona last year and he had 47 tackles, 10 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks and he broke up 2 passes.  Reed played in 43 games (34 starts) in his four years at Arizona and he had 114 tackles, 25 tackles for a loss, 17 sacks and he broke up 5 passes.  Reed plays hard all of the time but it seems like the Texans reached quite a bit here for a need as no one had him projected to go this high.