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*This article is part of our 2010 Path to the Draft coverage presented by FOX Sports Houston.
After the Texans selected Alabama cornerback Kareem Jackson with the 20th pick of the second round, defensive coordinator Frank Bush answered questions from the media. The following is a transcript of his interview.
Texans defensive coordinator Frank Bush
(on why the Texans chose Kareem Jackson over Devin McCourty and Kyle Wilson) "Both those kids are very talented players, really impressive college careers and you know we really liked a lot of things that they did. But when you looked at the total package and what (CB) Kareem (Jackson) brought to our football team, you saw a guy that was tough, you saw a guy that was aggressive, we saw a very smart football player. And he's still an underclassman, he's a junior coming out early and so there's a tremendous upside. And the fact that he played in the national championship, we like that. We like winners in the building and we're trying to get more winners on our program."
(on how they plan to use CB Kareem Jackson) "We're going to put him out at the right corner and start teaching him the defense. He played for (Alabama head coach) Nick Saban, he played in a complex system. So picking up our stuff shouldn't be a real task for him but we're going to give him every opportunity to be a starter for our football team and contribute."
(on if they were set on a defensive player as the time got close) "We were set on defense. Of course you know there's two sides to the board as you look at the draft board and the offense had their guys that they really wanted and we had the guys that we wanted and as the things start to shake out, you know some things happened that we didn't forsee and then we had an opportunity to basically go back in and discuss the defensive players and this was a guy that we really wanted. He was a guy that we had really high on our draft board as far as defense is concerned and so that gave us an opportunity to go get him. We had a need in a lot of different positions as you guys understand and we were looking at running back but we also had a need at corner. We felt like this was a player that we had to go get."
(on what jumped out when he watched CB Kareem Jackson on film) "You know, it's hard to pick a name of a guy that he reminded me of. He was really just a solid, solid football player. There are not a lot of holes, per se, in his game. And the more you watched him, the more you liked him. The kid's got tremendous ball skills. He's got quick feet. He will come up and tackle you. He showed some leadership on the field. There is some emotion, there is some passion. At the end of the day, you know he played for (Alabama head coach) Nick Saban so you know he's tough."
(on if his playing in the SEC helped in their evaluation) "It helped a lot. You know, one of the things you're always trying to compare is you're trying to see how those guys match up to the real guys or the guys that are going to be playing in the National Football League, or players that are similar to guys in the National Football League. And he just had more opportunities. He has some opportunities to go against the Floridas of the world and play against Arkansas and other type teams whereas you know some of those other kids don't play against that competition. We felt good about this guy being able to make the next step because he's played against a lot of the same guys that he'll be playing against at this level."
(on if it helps that he's played on both sides of the field) "Absolutely. He played primarily right corner but they would put him on the other side sometimes and he played well over there. You know you could find him in the slot from time to time where he played inside. So we were really confident that he could come in and learn our system and just hit the ground running per se."
(on why they chose CB Kareem Jackson over the other corners left on the board) "Like I touched on earlier, we felt like this kid was probably the most complete and game-ready to come play in the National Football League. Those other kids are talented but we felt like this guy could come in to OTAs, get the training, learn the defense and be ready to go play football whereas none of those other kids--there's going to be a little bit of a learning curve. There's going to be a little bit of time that you've got to put in on the job. Not that they can't play but this kid is ready to go play football in the National Football League."
(on what about Alabama head coach Nick Saban's game plan is so complex) "Nick's a complex man. But more than anything, he demands a lot of his players. He gives them a lot on their plate, I guess you could say. He demands that they understand the defense and not just one level of it. He teaches a lot of details of the defense. He gives them a lot of checks, a lot of different things they can go to versus different sets and those kids have to handle it, and he demands that they handle it. We like that approach. We probably won't be as hard as they are but we know he can handle whatever we throw at him."
(on what his favorite thing about CB Kareem Jackson is) "His toughness. The thing we're trying to get here and become on defense is tough. And that kid is tough. We know that he's tough. He showed it on tape. He's been that way throughout his career at Alabama and we just want him to bring some of that to our building."
(on if they talked to Alabama head coach Nick Saban about CB Kareem Jackson) "You know, we talked to some of their coaches down there. We know several guys on the staff. We talked to them about the kid and his career, kind of what kind of person he is, what kind of man he is and we found out a lot of good stuff on him so we're comfortable with him."
(on what he's worried about) "That I can get the job done of teaching him the defense, basically. We don't worry about a lot, again, we like this player. We're confident that we got the right guy. We think he can handle the job so there's not a lot to worry about. We've just got to go out and get him coached up."
