For the third time in franchise history, the Texans have the first overall pick in the draft.

And for the third time, they have to make a major decision involving a multitalented defensive end that will impact the franchise for years.

In 2002, the Texans made the first pick because they were an expansion team. They selected Fresno State quarterback David Carr over North Carolina defensive end Julius Peppers.

In 2006, the Texans earned the first pick the hard way, finishing with an NFL-worst 2-14 record. They chose North Carolina State defensive end Mario Williams over Southern Cal running back Reggie Bush and Texas quarterback Vince Young.

On May 8, the first day of this year's draft, the Texans have the top pick by virtue of their league-worst 2-14 record.

If they don't receive an overwhelming offer to trade down, they could choose South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney or one of two quarterbacks - Johnny Manziel or Blake Bortles.

Carr thrown into fire

In 2002, Charley Casserly was the general manager and Dom Capers the head coach. Casserly was still the GM in 2006, which was Gary Kubiak's first year as Texans coach.

This year, general manager Rick Smith has the top pick for the first time, and Bill O'Brien is the first-year coach.

The only constant in the process has been owner Bob McNair.

"That was an exciting time in 2002," McNair said recently. "Charley emphasized we didn't have a quarterback, and this was a chance to get a franchise quarterback. The focus was on that."

The Texans began to target Carr in late October but weren't convinced until January.

"Probably from the Senior Bowl on, everybody was of the mind that David was the best guy for us," McNair said. "David was a good athlete and a first-class guy. Everybody thought he could be the guy."

Looking back, McNair believes the coaches made a mistake starting Carr immediately rather than going with veteran backup Tony Banks. Carr, who would start all but four games in his five seasons, was sacked a league-record 76 times as a rookie.

"I think the main thing I look back on is that we should have had a veteran quarterback in there," McNair said. "We should have let him start the season and let David learn what it takes to be an NFL quarterback."

Mario the right call

The Texans won't make the same mistake this year.

Ryan Fitzpatrick - or possibly Case Keenum or T.J. Yates - will start until O'Brien and quarterbacks coach George Godsey believe the rookie is ready.

Another problem in 2002 was offensive tackle. Tony Boselli, one of the best in the NFL, was acquired in the expansion draft but never played because of a shoulder injury. Rookie guard Chester Pitts, a second-round pick, was forced to play left tackle.

Right tackle Ryan Young suffered a season-ending knee injury midway through the season.

"We weren't able to give Carr the kind of protection we thought he should have," McNair said. "I don't put a lot of blame on him."

The Texans bypassed Peppers, who has played 12 years with Carolina and Chicago and averaged 9.6 sacks a season. Peppers, who signed with Green Bay in March, has been to eight Pro Bowls.

The Texans cannot afford to make that kind of mistake again.

When they drafted Williams in 2006, it was a controversial decision locally and nationally but turned out to be the right choice.

Young is out of football. Bush has bounced around the NFL.

Williams, who played his first six seasons with the Texans before Buffalo made him the highest-paid defensive player in history, has averaged 9.5 sacks a season and been voted to three Pro Bowls. Eliminate two injury-plagued years, and he has averaged 11.1 sacks. He had 13 last season.

"That was absolutely the right decision," McNair said. "That was a very organized process.

"We'd been interested in Mario for some time. Less was known about Mario than Bush or any of these other guys. N.C. State wasn't a powerhouse. He hadn't received much recognition."

Williams had an extraordinary combine. Listed at 6-7 and 295 at the combine, he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.66, benched 225 pounds 35 times and had a 40½-inch vertical.

By comparison, at the combine, Clowney was measured at 6-5½ and 266, ran a 4.53, benched 221 and had a 37½-inch vertical.

"It was obvious to everybody that Mario was an athletic freak, a tremendous physical specimen - a guy who didn't quite know what he was doing, but everyone could see his physical ability was exceptional," McNair said. "Before the draft, I had our offensive coordinator (Troy Calhoun) make a presentation on Bush. His whole presentation was what our offense would look like with Bush.

"Then our defensive coordinator (Richard Smith) came in, and we did the same thing with Mario. Later, I talked with Gary about it. Which team is the better team? The team that's got Bush on offense or the team that's got Mario on defense? That should determine what we do.

"Everybody was in agreement that we would be a stronger team with Mario on defense. That was the basis for that decision, and it was the right decision. Mario was the greater enduring value."

A word from the wise

Before the Texans make their decision this year, they must decide if Clowney can be as good or better than Peppers and Williams or if Manziel of Bortles can develop into the franchise quarterback they desperately need.

If they select a quarterback, Carr has some advice. He sounds a lot like his former boss, McNair.

"You've got to have an organization that cares, a team that shows they're really committed to that area," said Carr, who won a Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants. "Obviously, getting good players and protecting (the quarterback). If you're going to spend the money on a franchise quarterback, you've got to keep him on his feet, and you better give him a chance to throw.

"At the same time - and these two things work hand in hand - it's not only the offensive line talent but the continuity from the offensive coordinator and his scheme. The scheme along with that talent are two things that are inseparable."

In his five seasons, Carr had two head coaches, three offensive coordinators, three different schemes, three quarterback coaches and four offensive line coaches.

"You can have a talented offensive line that gives up a lot of sacks, and that's the fault of the system," he said. "I think you can have talented coordinators that have bad offensive lines, and that's a fault of that bad offensive line. You have to have a combination of those two things.

"You have to have a coordinator that knows what he's doing and that's able to work around the limitations of the guys, because you're not going to have Pro Bowl players at every position."