The Texans went back to the defensive side of the ball with their first fourth-round pick, taking cornerback Glover Quin (5-11, 204) from New Mexico. Ten picks later, the team drafted North Carolina State tight end Anthony Hill (6-5, 262), a Houston native, with a pick acquired from the Minnesota Vikings in the Sage Rosenfels trade.
Quin was a first-team All-Mountain West selection last season after compiling 53 tackles, 4.5 for loss, along with five interceptions and 11 pass breakups. At the combine, he ran a 4.5 40-yard dash, benched 225 pounds 22 times and recorded a 38-inch vertical jump. He was a three-year starter at cornerback for the Lobos but has been projected as a possible free safety in the NFL.
"They told me I was coming in as a corner," Quin said of his conversations with Texans coaches. "I'm looking to play the nickel corner and just keep practicing and try to move into the starting lineup."
A native of Summit, Miss., Quin was honorable mention all-conference his first two seasons at New Mexico and was credited with two picks and 20 pass breakups. He began his career at Southwest Mississippi Junior College, redshirting his first season with a broken right arm.
"I think that you can always improve your defense with corners," general manager Rick Smith said on Wednesday before the draft. "I think you've got to take corners all the time. You look at the two drafts that I've run so far, and I'm going to always take corners because I don't think you can have enough guys that can cover and run and hit and do all those things that we ask them to do."
Hill, who prepped at Clear Brook High School and Hargrave Military Academy, is a strong blocker who clocked a 4.81 in the 40 at the combine. He measured in with an arm span of 34 3/4 inches and a hand span of 10 1/8 inches. He'll help to fill the void left by tight end Mark Bruener, a blocking specialist who retired after the 2008 season.
"He's a run blocker," tight ends coach Brian Pariani said. "I thought he did a tremendous job in the Senior Bowl and in the draft workouts and also in Indinapolis at the combine.
"There's not a lot of career stats you can take for a tight end of this (kind). When you draft players like this, people are going to say, 'What about his numbers?' and those things. But what this guy brings, you haved to run the ball in the league, and that's what this guy (will help us do). With Mark retiring, he'll be a good fit for what we want to do."
In 2006, Hill was a second-team All-ACC performer as a sophomore after making 45 catches for 478 yards. He missed the 2007 season with a torn ACL. Hill sat out four games with a chest injury as a senior but still scored four touchdowns on 19 receptions.
The Texans have drafted a defensive player with three of their first five picks - linebacker Brian Cushing, defensive end Connor Barwin and Quin. Barring a trade, their next pick will be at No. 152 overall, the 16th selection of the fifth round.
