Photo Courtesy: Keith Allison
Vince Wilfork had a remarkable career in New England. He now is ready for the new challenge that lies in Houston.
Wilfork agreed to a two year, $9 million deal that includes $5 million guaranteed, a nice amount of change to get at this point in his career. He will add to what was an already lethal and scary defensive line for opponents to deal with.
Come September, the Texans will be able to trot out a defensive line that features J.J. Watt, Vince Wilfork and Jadeveon Clowney, a trio that will cause allot of damage to opposing offensive lines and even more importantly to opposing quarterbacks.
One of the major factors that made this such a great fit and easy opportunity for Wilfork to take and want is the familiarity he has with the Texans coaching staff. He played and grew as a player in his rookie year under current Houston defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel back in 2004. The former Patriot also has ties to Texans head coach Bill O’ Brien who was in New England from 2007-2011 on Bill Belichick’s staff. Also Mike Vrabel, who is currently the linebackers coach for the Texans, was a former teammate of Wilfork’s from 2004-2008.
So as you see, all these connection easily soothed any questions or concerns Wilfork had about coming to Houston. This familiarity for these coaches and how they like to prepare, work and what they want from their players will make getting to understand the defensive system the Texans run very easy for the veteran. In no time he will be just playing and reacting to what opposing offensive lines try to do to him in this scheme. Their will be very little hesitation from him and will be able to power up what was an already strong, physical defensive line and take it to another level.
Another reason why this move for Wilfork was nothing but a win-win situation for him was that he will be able to start right away and not just be a veteran reserve player who only sees partial amounts of on field playing time. Louis Nix, a 2014 third round pick by the Texans, has battled injuries so far in his young career. He has arthroscopic knee surgery during training camp in 2014. He then injured his wrist, which led to Houston putting him on injured reserved for the rest of that season.
This has opened up the door for Wilfork to step in and take the starting role while also being a mentor to Nix, who will sit behind the veteran and learn the position and the technique to improve his overall game as he continues to come back from injury and start his NFL career at 100% full health.
This addition will only make the Texans defense that much stronger as a whole. Wilfork will be a presence not only on the field but off it as well in a positive way. It is a win-win for not only Wilfork, but for the Texans as well.
