Fan Pulse: Houston Chronicle writer says Williams isn’t best on the Texans

By Neal Coolong  |   Thursday, July 10, 2008  |  Comments( 3 )

Houston Texans
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Texans beat writer John McClain thinks Houston DE Mario Williams is a good player.

He's just not the best on his team's roster.

Following up on CBS Sportsline writer Pete Prisco's Top 50 Players in the NFL column, which has generated plenty of its own headlines, McClain, like many others, took exception to the fact that Williams was ranked No. 6. His argument is that WR Andre Johnson (ranked No. 26) is the cream of Houston's crop.

He puts a slight disclaimer on it.

"Taking into account what a player has accomplished since he's been in the league and what he might accomplish this season, my No. 1 Texan is Andre Johnson. And I might put DeMeco Ryans second and Williams third."

Johnson had similar physical reviews as Williams did coming out of college. Namely, both were thought of as freakishly big for their position, insanely athletic and destined to make an impact in the league. Since 2003, Johnson has 25 touchdowns in 70 NFL games, which is likely the main factor that keeps him from being thought of as a top five NFL wideout.

Texans fans commenting on McClain's blog, though, agree with him more than they disagree. They responded in force to McClain's request for the fans' choices for the five best players on the Texans.

Many put tackling machine DeMeco Ryans in the top three; perhaps rightly so, considering he's the backbone for what's soon to be a dominant defensive unit.

"OK, I'll give it a shot:

1. Andre Johnson
2. DeMeco Ryans (very close and Mario could pass him this year)
3. Mario Williams (coming on)
4. Dunta Robinson
5. Chester Pitts (played every snap for years)"

Another poster was in favor of AJ and Ryans, but included a bit of a surprise at No. 5.

"1. Andre Johnson
2. DeMeco Ryans
3. Mario Williams
4. Duanta Robinson
5. Kris Brown

Why Kris Brown you ask, because he has been solid for us. His foot secured "The Victory" against the Colts and the #1 draft pick that got us Mario over small Reggie Bush and just because he is from Houston doesn't make him good Vince Young. Can't wait till season starts!!"

Of course, there must be the haters in the comments.

"Asking who is the best Texan player is akin to asking which Hyena is the prettiest. They're not going to do anything this year, just like last year, so what's the point? It takes more then an individual player to win games, and this is one of the worst teams ever. This is why Dallas is going for their 6th ring, while Houston shoots for 1 game above 500."
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About Neal Coolong

Neal Coolong is a freelance sports writer with contributions to Scout.com, AOL and Steelers Live. He lives with his fiance in St. Paul, Minn., and saves every dime (that she knows about) for their wedding next June. He's already made the prediction that the Steelers 2007 draft class will be one...
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