The 2014 NFL Draft sits one week away and Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith has a big decision to make with the No. 1 pick.
"I absolutely know who I want," Smith told Fox Sports Southwest, per the team's official website.
Please, sir, won't you share with the rest of us?
Smith might know whom he wants, but that doesn't mean he will keep the pick.
"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."
Plugged-in Texans beat reporter John McClain has linked Houston to both Jadeveon Clowney and Johnny Manziel at No. 1.
On Thursday, McClain said he believes if the Texans keep the pick, it will be Clowney. If they trade the No. 1 pick -- likely not lower than No. 6 overall -- the team would select either Khalil Mack or Blake Bortles (with the assumption that Manziel will be gone if Houston trades down).
It's possible the Texans take Clowney at No. 1, then select a quarterback with their first pick in the second round (similar to how San Diego got both LaDainian Tomlinson at No. 5 and Drew Brees in the 2001 draft).
However, McClain suggested the Texans could trade their second-round selection to gather more picks.
"Texans enter draft with 11 picks," McClain noted on his Twitter feed. "Rick Smith would like to acquire more, especially in the first three rounds."
This train of thought meshes with the idea we've discussed on the "Around The League Podcast": The Texans have more holes to fill than owner Bob McNair admitted back in December.
To fill those holes, the No. 1 pick clearly is on the table. If Smith can't find the right deal in the first round, he could use his second rounder to gain more selections.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" runs through the latest NFL draft headlines and takes a look at which coaches and GMs are lying about their intentions.
