With the number one pick in April’s 2006 draft, the Houston Texans are on the clock.  Just this week, sources close to the organization said they would go with Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush with their first round choice.  If that is true, it’s hard to complain with that decision, but others may say why not select National Champion MVP and Houston native Vince Young?  The people of Texas love football: high school, college and the NFL.  You better believe they are huge Vince Young fans after the season he had for the University of Texas.  Let’s take a closer look at the problem Houston faces with this number one pick.

If you draft Bush:  You get the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner, the most explosive player college football has seen maybe ever, and a player that can instantly make the Texans better.  In 13 games this season, Reggie had 200 rushing attempts, 1,740 yards and an 8.7-yard rushing average (highest average in the nation by a running back) and averages133 yards per game.  Bush was not only a great runner, he also had 37 receptions for 478 yards and was a huge threat in the return game with a 10 yard punt return average and an 18 yard kick return average.  All those stats combined made him the nation’s leader in all-purpose yards with a 222-yard per game average. 

The downside of this pick is Bush is a smaller back that needs the help of a quality offensive line to open up rushing lanes.  The Texan’s offensive line is one of the worst in the NFL.  Another issue is the Texans already have one of the NFL’s top running backs in Domanick Davis. Davis has over 3100 yards in his 3 year NFL career and a 4.1 yards per carry average. 

If you draft Young: You get the 2005 & 2006 Rose Bowl MVP, with the best combination of running and passing from a quarterback since Michael Vick.  Young was 212 of 325 for 3,036 yards and 26 touchdowns.  He also rushed for 1,186 this year to lead his team in rushing and lead the nation in rushing from the QB position.  Young is from Houston and would instantly become a fan favorite. That would boost season ticket sales immediately.  The downside of this pick would be passing up a potential future Hall of Famer in Reggie Bush.  Also the Texans already have a decent young quarterback in David Carr.  Carr has thrown for more than 2,000 yards in each of his first 4 NFL seasons.  He has also played in every game but 4 in his career even though he has been the most sacked quarterback over that time span because of a poor offensive line.

No matter which way the Texans decide to go, it will be hard to say they made a bad decision.  If I were the General Manager of the Texans, I would trade the pick for current players or more draft picks.  If you trade the pick, you have an opportunity to upgrade your offensive line and other troubled areas.  Houston definitely has a huge decision to make, but it’s a good problem to have.