DGDB&D: a Texans blog.

Tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take… OUR FREE SAFETY!

Sep 11, 2007 2007 Season, Free Agency, Ohio State makes baby Jesus cry, Secondary issues are primary, Von

Maybe I am just going overboard with the glass-half-full approach, but it looks like our fuzzy math, addition-by-subtraction method of creating a secondary continues.

We have talked repeatedly about how C.C. Brown is really a Strong Safety forced to play Free either because (if you are a Brown fan) he was slightly better at that position than Glenn Earl or (if you are not a Brown fan) because he was not good enough to beat out Earl for SS. Either way, he was playing out of position.

No longer. It appears, according to a commenter at BRB, that Von Hutchins will take Jason Simmons spot as a starter, but will play Free Safety. I like this move. I like it a lot, actually. I still say Hutchins was the only starting safety candidate who showed a nose for the ball. Plus, being a converted corner, he shouldn’t struggle when asked to cover WRs. (Something that Brown continues to struggle with.) That gives us Hutchins and a free-agent-signing-to-be-named-later on the FS depth chart, along with Brown and Michael Boulware at SS. (According to the link, if Boulware starts, Brown will stay at Free Safety. Odd. I imagine that arrangement would be short-lived if Brown continues to play the pass as poorly as he has.)

Depth, obviously, is a problem. Right now, we have exactly three healthy safeties, all listed above. Current free agent Free Safeties include Indrees Bashir and Jerome Woods. (There are also a couple slightly older CBs who might be able to convert, but I doubt that you want your team with two conversion projects getting serious playing time.) On the practice squad, we have Brandon Mitchell. Of those three, I suppose I would most prefer to bring the Buckeye (*spit*) over, but the other two guys at least have experience as starting FS. That might count for something, especially in the “help Von Hutchins come along” department.

OH… speaking of free agent defensive backs. According to NFL Network, New England Patriot CB Assante Samuel can become an unrestricted free agent if (a) the Pats win 12 games or (b) he plays 60% of the defensive snaps. File that under “intriguing.”

UPDATE: Via tyler, we signed Will Demps. This Will Demps. I guess every team needs a guy who doesn’t like easy, large-breasted women. In this way, he will be our Jeff Garcia or Tony Romo.