Former Houston Texans defensive coordinator Wade Phillips believes Houston should select Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel with the No. 1 pick in the upcoming 2014 NFL draft. Although Manziel impressed Phillips with his playmaking ability, Phillips admitted Texans owner Bob McNair may not be as keen on drafting the Heisman winner.
If Phillips were the head coach for Houston, he'd choose Manziel.
"Those kinds of guys who can make first downs when you're not supposed to, I think they give you something," Phillips said, via CBS Houston. "I just think he makes plays that nobody else can make. ...
"I thought it would be the Earl Campbell of Houston, the reincarnation. Having the Heisman trophy winner come to Houston, from the state of Texas, I just thought it would be a neat deal."
While Manziel has a fan in Phillips, McNair may not feel the same way about the signal caller.
"When I did the interview with the McNairs, I told them they ought to take Johnny Football," Phillips said, via CBS Houston. "That's what I told them and I'm sitting here now."
Manziel is expected to be one of the first three quarterbacks picked, and ESPN's Mel Kiper projects Manziel to go first overall to Houston in April.
"When you talk to people in the league, I get a consensus on Manziel that I don't get with Bortles or Bridgewater; a consensus that Manziel at worst is going five, he's going in the top five somewhere," Kiper explained Wednesday on ESPN. "And this is a guy who if you start thinking about him at five or seven, hey what's wrong with No. 1? It's not like your paying Stafford or Bradford money.
"Johnny Manziel is a magician on the field. If he eats, sleeps and drinks football 365 days a year, to me, he can be a very good to great player in the NFL. And today's NFL kind of suits his skill set very effectively and very well. ...
"If (the Texans) take a quarterback, I think Manziel is going to have to be heavily in the discussion."
Although another report claims McNair does want Manziel, new coach Bill O'Brien is reportedly leaning toward selecting UCF quarterback Blake Bortles with the first pick.
