Cards: Bowman Chrome 2005, Leaf Rookies & Stars 2005
Acquired: In Person, 10/11/2011. Texans Whataburger Community Player of the Month

As I was packing to leave California, I started scouting ‘local’ autograph opportunities around the Central Texas Area. I found out that the Texans held community player of the month events during the season and that players routinely appeared around town to sign autographs. In this case the Texans sponsored the event, so I figured I could show up without much hassle since it was Dreesen and his sponsor Matt Schaub. I tried to figure out how early I should arrive at the event by posting something on the message board, but there was no response, so I decided that the best thing to was to just plan to get there an hour before the signing. Arriving at about 345 I was issued the 120th wristband by the corporate staff of both of the organizations by two very nice women. They jokingly asked if I was there to see them, to which I flirted back at them unabashedly which caused them to giggle like school girls. As I waited in line I chatted it up with my neighbors around me. One of them was waiting for a friend and had run out of Joel Dreessen items to get signed, but since there was also a sign limiting 1 autograph per player per person and I had 2 extra cards- things sorta fell into place. He offered to get the other cards signed because he had more friends attending the event, so I thought it’d be equitable to allow them to keep one of the extra cards I had of Joel. The session moved pretty quickly and in roughly 40 minutes I had an autograph in hand from both players. I asked Joel if the route he ran at the end of the Raiders game that almost won them the game was the same play that the Texans used against the Redskins last year that was key in their victory- but unfortunately it wasn’t. I also snapped a hasty picture from my camera of him and then moved on to Schaub. Afterwards, I hucked down a #6 and drove back to Austin like a happy bandit, with the autographs in hand.

The Texans do two things without fail- draft tight ends and get players from Colorado State. Joel Dreessen was initially drafted by the New York Jets in the 6th round of the 2005 draft. As both a tight end and a long snapper, the team felt that they could find him a home under head coach Eric Mangini, but Joel was on the street by 2006.  Houston, using their Colorado State connection (David Anderson, Mike Brisiel, & Jessie Nading) brought in Dreessen to back up Owen Daniels and be the team’s primary long snapper.  At 6-4, 260, Dreessen is a nice sized blocker as well as a decent receiver in traffic. He wouldn’t start any games for the Texans in 2007, and make only 4 receptions, but 2 of those would go for touchdowns, including his first professional TD against the Chargers. He’d build on that and by 2009, Dreessen would start 11 games in relief for Daniels, with 26 catches for 320 yards and a TD.  In 2010, Joel would have his best season, with 36 receptions for 518 yards and 4 TDs.  As 2011 has materialized so far, the Texans continue to find ways to work Dreessen into the lineup including 2 and 3 tight end sets that devastate opposing defensive lines and create heavy mismatches.