2024 Houston Texans off-season thread

[Wishbone 4,924]

8 minutes ago, tx 3 putt said:

Any FA signings ?

 

56 minutes ago, Fud said:

 

 

44 minutes ago, Fud said:

 

 

[TonyTexas 10,682]

23 minutes ago, tx 3 putt said:

Any FA signings ?

I don’t think they are planning to sign manny. These are the ones I’ve seen. 

 

Edited April 28 by TonyTexas

[Harrison Stafford 3,390]

1 hour ago, Fud said:

 

My wife did her undergrad studies at South Dakota State and I’ve seen the Janke twins play a number of times over the past two seasons.    This is a solid FA signing and I like their chances of sticking as special teams/WR.

Edited April 28 by Harrison Stafford

[Planet Houston 4,949]

2 hours ago, Harrison Stafford said:

My wife did her undergrad studies at South Dakota State and I’ve seen the Janke twins play a number of times over the past two seasons.    This is a solid FA signing and I like their chances of sticking as special teams/WR.

So fucking random and great - Surly gonna Shaggy. Awesome, thanks for the personal insight. 

[Bevo 13,820]

Seems like a kind of uninspiring draft. Last year we had 2 stars, of course they were early first rounders. This year we have depth - a corner who looks solid but lacks elite speed and will probably end up at nickle. A solid OT prospect that will be a backup to start his career. A TE who is solid but lacks elite athleticism. And a safety who is good in coverage but not very good against the run. Lots of moves in the draft that seemed to lack purpose. FA was very good but we will still need to add solid defensive tackles. So far, it looks like a very good off-season despite questions about the draft.

[Fud 9,696]

Look, once you're good it's tough to find instant starters in the draft after the second round. Houston probably found a starting nickel. Their other starter from the draft is Stefon Diggs. 

I really like the Fisher pick because it's difficult to find plus left tackle upside players outside of the first half or so of the first round (this year was an abnormally deep draft). If this was a regular tackle draft, Fisher likely goes towards the top of the second or even sneaks into the first due to the positional inflation. There's a good chance he plays tackle this year simply because the starters seem to struggle to stay healthy for every game. 

 

[Fud 9,696]

Here's the summary from Brugler's blurbs on our picks

Lassiter doesn’t have elite physical traits at a position where size and speed are at a premium, but his play recognition and competitiveness are both off the charts. Although he is viewed as a nickel-only by several teams, he has starting talent that is best suited for a zone-match scheme.

Fisher is a big, athletic finesse blocker who flashes power but falls off too many blocks and needs to introduce mor e control to his play style before he is ready for NFL competition. He is a developmental prospect reminiscent of Nicholas Petit-Frere (2022 third-round pick).

Bullock is a fast, twitchy athlete with split-field range to overlap verticals or spin to the post, but he needs to play with improved discipline and control to cut down on the mistakes, specifically in the run game.

Stover might never be a top-tier blocker, but he is solid in all phases and will earn NFL paychecks because of his coordinated athleticism to finish at the catch point and move the chains. With his defensive mentality, offensive skills and special-teams experience, he projects as an NFL role player with starting upside and valuable versatility.

Hill might be without a true position in most schemes, but he can be a standout on coverage teams and provide depth as a hybrid ‘backer in subpackages.

Jordan is a lightweight runner with questionable durability to secure a meaningful role at the NFL level, but he has the start/stop quickness and natural run instincts to be a change-of-pace option in the right situation. He also brings value as a kick returner.

Byrd has NFL-worthy flashes, because of his length and always-revving motor, but his consistency — especially as a run defender — must improve for him to make it in the NFL. He projects as a development prospect and a likely candidate for the practice squad.

Harris is an undersized tackle who can be neutralized versuslong-armed blockers, but he has the quickness and instincts to clear creases as a one -gap penetrator. He can find an NFL home as part of a rotation.

Henderson has the length and movement skill that NFL offensive line coaches want to work with, but his inconsistent slide tempo and overall feel for balance might put a cap on his pro ceiling. There is some upside there for a zone-blocking scheme to develop.

[boilerhorn 1,602]

On 4/20/2024 at 8:49 AM, Fud said:

 

 

On 4/20/2024 at 8:54 AM, closetojumping said:

Where is he currently projected? I wouldn’t be surprised if that dude ended up being 10+ year NFL player. 

 

Catching up on this thread and saw the above.  Agree w/ ctj's assessment - Wilson could be a 10 year player.  Butkus award.  400+ tackles. 6'4"/233. 4.33 40.
Overall, he was ranked #48 and the #3 LB.  

Fell to the Steelers at #98 overall.

Fwiw, this pick was part of the Kenny Pickett trade that sent him to Phil.  I already feel like Pitt got its money's worth

[Bevo 13,820]

40 minutes ago, Fud said:

Look, once you're good it's tough to find instant starters in the draft after the second round. Houston probably found a starting nickel. Their other starter from the draft is Stefon Diggs. 

I really like the Fisher pick because it's difficult to find plus left tackle upside players outside of the first half or so of the first round (this year was an abnormally deep draft). If this was a regular tackle draft, Fisher likely goes towards the top of the second or even sneaks into the first due to the positional inflation. There's a good chance he plays tackle this year simply because the starters seem to struggle to stay healthy for every game. 

 

That trade down out of the first and then wasting most of those extra picks to move up a few spots was not good. I like the tOSU pick and the Notre Dame pick. I hate the USC picks and don't think either will stick. The UGA pick is okay but I think a DT would have been a smarter choice. Without that trade out of the first, almost all of the DTs were still on the board.

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

I watched the Caserio/Ryans PC last night. They love Lassiter and Stover. 

Nick used the word "elite" a few times when talking about Stover. They see a ton of upside as he's only played TE for a couple of years. 

 

 

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

2 minutes ago, Bevo said:

That trade down out of the first and then wasting most of those extra picks to move up a few spots was not good. I like the tOSU pick and the Notre Dame pick. I hate the USC picks and don't think either will stick. The UGA pick is okay but I think a DT would have been a smarter choice. Without that trade out of the first, almost all of the DTs were still on the board.

It's a 53 man roster and they were pleased with overall depth heading into the draft. They don't need bodies. 

 

Edited April 28 by Hank Kingsley

[TonyTexas 10,682]

6 minutes ago, Hank Kingsley said:

It's a 53 man roster and they were pleased with overall depth heading into the draft. They don't need bodies. 

 

Then why did they draft primarily depth pieces? To be clear, I’m not mad at this draft. But I see it for what it is. 

[closetojumping 65,242]

11 minutes ago, Hank Kingsley said:

I watched the Caserio/Ryans PC last night. They love Lassiter and Stover. 

Nick used the word "elite" a few times when talking about Stover. They see a ton of upside as he's only played TE for a couple of years. 

 

 

I don’t see how you can watch that dude play and consider him “elite”. Then again, they’re allegedly telling people they drafted the best OT from Notre Dame, so maybe they’re just waste deep in some really good white powder or something.  

Also, the Lassiter fawning by the Texans staff, media and patrons on this thread is a smidge over the top. He’s a slow CB who’s been propped up by an elite defense and his excellent ball skills. He looks like a middling NFL player compared to other choices in that spot. 

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

5 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I don’t see how you can watch that dude play and consider him “elite”. Then again, they’re allegedly telling people they drafted the best OT from Notre Dame, so maybe they’re just waste deep in some really good white powder or something.  

Also, the Lassiter fawning by the Texans staff, media and patrons on this thread is a smidge over the top. He’s a slow CB who’s been propped up by an elite defense and his excellent ball skills. He looks like a middling NFL player compared to other choices in that spot. 

I'm not really that familiar with any of these draft picks. Seems like Demeco focuses on players with desire/effort more than measurables. And Caserio likes taking dudes from big programs that played "better" competition. Whether that works out or not remains to be seen. 

I'm sure CJ was championing the Stover pick as well. 

 

[Fud 9,696]

22 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

I don’t see how you can watch that dude play and consider him “elite”. Then again, they’re allegedly telling people they drafted the best OT from Notre Dame, so maybe they’re just waste deep in some really good white powder or something.  

Also, the Lassiter fawning by the Texans staff, media and patrons on this thread is a smidge over the top. He’s a slow CB who’s been propped up by an elite defense and his excellent ball skills. He looks like a middling NFL player compared to other choices in that spot. 

Lassiter is more than fine at nickel in this defense that sits in a two safety shell all day. You don’t want him at outside corner 

[Fud 9,696]

26 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Then why did they draft primarily depth pieces? To be clear, I’m not mad at this draft. But I see it for what it is. 

It’s depth this year with an eye towards starting 2-3 years down the road

51 minutes ago, boilerhorn said:

 

 

Catching up on this thread and saw the above.  Agree w/ ctj's assessment - Wilson could be a 10 year player.  Butkus award.  400+ tackles. 6'4"/233. 4.33 40.
Overall, he was ranked #48 and the #3 LB.  

Fell to the Steelers at #98 overall.

Fwiw, this pick was part of the Kenny Pickett trade that sent him to Phil.  I already feel like Pitt got its money's worth

One of the draft guys on TV said that he basically doesn’t have an ACL in one of his knees. He might not make it to his second contract 

[TonyTexas 10,682]

23 minutes ago, Fud said:

It’s depth this year with an eye towards starting 2-3 years down the road

This is what I’ve been saying. My question was simply in rebuttal to Hank’s post. 

[Murfdogg21 4,547]

Caserio gets benefit of the doubt until trouble shows up on the field, but there have been a head scratching moves especially in hindsight. 
 

- Trade back with Minnesota got good Jimmy Johnson draft chart point value, but at #23 they could’ve had a starting WR with Worthy, Pearsall, or Mitchel (#3 now, maybe #2 next year if Nico walks). Or got a consensus starting CB in Terion Arnold (or they could’ve moved up a couple spots to get Quinyon Mitchell).

- I know what Caserio said his logic was for reducing Diggs’s contract length and extending Mixon, but I don’t agree with either. Diggs was under a team-friendly non-guaranteed contract. If you thought there’s a good chance he becomes a cancer, you shouldn’t trade for him. You traded the 2025 Vikings 2nd (likely somewhere in the #35-45 range) for a one year rental of Diggs, who you already acknowledge could turn into a problem? Joe Money Mixon…the Bengals know him the best and felt he wasn’t worth the base money left on his deal. Texans could’ve let it play out with Mixon in a contract year to get the best effort and production from him. Instead, they gave him more money and less motivation, extending him into an age where most RBs start to fall off. 

- Sitting at #42, after the run on OT’s, they misread the room on Sweat’s value, and waited too long while “first round talent” DBs Koolaid and DeJean were taken at #40 and 41. They missed an anchor DT (position of need) or better DB and took a slow CB.

- CJ was advocating for Hall Jr. and I guess they may have thought he’d be there at #59, but they thought wrong. 

- Burning a 4th that was part of their other trade just to move up 8 spots in the late 3rd round to take a skinny safety who struggles against the run and played on a bad defense is questionable. They could’ve taken JT Sanders there, or stayed at #86 and taken him while keeping #123. Oh they didn’t need to draft a TE? They took Stover who seems like a project with their next pick. 

I’m not going to criticize later round picks since they are practically scratch off lotto tickets with low hit rates. At least they didn’t take a former aggy 12th man, I guess. If they’d come away with Dejean/Koolaid, OT or S at #59, and JT Sanders it would look a lot better on paper and to fans, and likely better odds at on field production in the short term when we’re trying to win during CJ’s rookie contract. 

[Fud 9,696]

9 minutes ago, Murfdogg21 said:

they misread the room on Sweat’s value

You're assuming they wanted Sweat there

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

5 minutes ago, Murfdogg21 said:

Caserio gets benefit of the doubt until trouble shows up on the field, but there have been a head scratching moves especially in hindsight. 
 

- Trade back with Minnesota got good Jimmy Johnson draft chart point value, but at #23 they could’ve had a starting WR with Worthy, Pearsall, or Mitchel (#3 now, maybe #2 next year if Nico walks). Or got a consensus starting CB in Terion Arnold (or they could’ve moved up a couple spots to get Quinyon Mitchell).

- I know what Caserio said his logic was for reducing Diggs’s contract length and extending Mixon, but I don’t agree with either. Diggs was under a team-friendly non-guaranteed contract. If you thought there’s a good chance he becomes a cancer, you shouldn’t trade for him. You traded the 2025 Vikings 2nd (likely somewhere in the #35-45 range) for a one year rental of Diggs, who you already acknowledge could turn into a problem? Joe Money Mixon…the Bengals know him the best and felt he wasn’t worth the base money left on his deal. Texans could’ve let it play out with Mixon in a contract year to get the best effort and production from him. Instead, they gave him more money and less motivation, extending him into an age where most RBs start to fall off. 

- Sitting at #42, after the run on OT’s, they misread the room on Sweat’s value, and waited too long while “first round talent” DBs Koolaid and DeJean were taken at #40 and 41. They missed an anchor DT (position of need) or better DB and took a slow CB.

- CJ was advocating for Hall Jr. and I guess they may have thought he’d be there at #59, but they thought wrong. 

- Burning a 4th that was part of their other trade just to move up 8 spots in the late 3rd round to take a skinny safety who struggles against the run and played on a bad defense is questionable. They could’ve taken JT Sanders there, or stayed at #86 and taken him while keeping #123. Oh they didn’t need to draft a TE? They took Stover who seems like a project with their next pick. 

I’m not going to criticize later round picks since they are practically scratch off lotto tickets with low hit rates. At least they didn’t take a former aggy 12th man, I guess. If they’d come away with Dejean/Koolaid, OT or S at #59, and JT Sanders it would look a lot better on paper and to fans, and likely better odds at on field production in the short term when we’re trying to win during CJ’s rookie contract. 

I think these are fair points, particularly the Diggs and Mixon contracts.

Based on PC, Lassiter and Stover were their 2 favorite draft picks. War room reaction to Bullock showed a lot of excitement, I guess they see upside. They seemed much more tempered about the Fisher pick. 

[Fud 9,696]

Just now, Hank Kingsley said:

I think these are fair points, particularly the Diggs and Mixon contracts.

Based on PC, Lassiter and Stover were their 2 favorite draft picks. War room reaction to Bullock showed a lot of excitement, I guess they see upside. They seemed much more tempered about the Fisher pick. 

They picked Lassiter among a pretty loaded nickel group (Sainristil, Rakestraw, Melton, Green). I would have guessed they'd opt for Rakestraw. The league seemed a bit cooler on DeJean and Kool-Aid than the internet, not sure if that's due to their recent injuries (that seem recoverable), or based on tape.

When the pick was made for Fisher, Caserio looked pretty pumped on TV. Never sure if that's performative. He's a nice tackle fit for an OZ team, and a redshirt year should help him iron our his technical issues and to add some weight

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

On another note, it feels like NIL will make 5th/6th/7th rounders even less valuable moving forward. Assuming fewer underclassmen will declare for the draft if they're getting a nice chunk from NIL, it will dilute the talent pool a bit. 

 

[TonyTexas 10,682]

3 minutes ago, Hank Kingsley said:

On another note, it feels like NIL will make 5th/6th/7th rounders even less valuable moving forward. Assuming fewer underclassmen will declare for the draft if they're getting a nice chunk from NIL, it will dilute the talent pool a bit. 

 

Even Mr. Irrelevant is guaranteed $4.1M over 4 years. No non-superstar college player is getting anywhere close to that in NIL money. 

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

1 minute ago, TonyTexas said:

Even Mr. Irrelevant is guaranteed $4.1M over 4 years. No non-superstar college player is getting anywhere close to that in NIL money. 

Right. But it feels like in the past some players declared early because they and their family needed the money ASAP. If they're getting significant help via NIL now, more will stay in school to elevate their draft stock. 

 

[Mantis Toboggan, MD 1,520]

Even Mr. Irrelevant is guaranteed $4.1M over 4 years. No non-superstar college player is getting anywhere close to that in NIL money. 

Mr. Irrelevant isnt’t guaranteed anything above his $100k or so signing bonus. He could get cut and make nothing more. Many late round picks get cut and don’t make shit.

[closetojumping 65,242]

8 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Even Mr. Irrelevant is guaranteed $4.1M over 4 years. No non-superstar college player is getting anywhere close to that in NIL money. 

It’s not black and white like that for most players in that 5th-UFA grade. 

Whittington and Sweat got shitty grades last year. They were offered excellent NIL to come back and bet on themselves. They both made themselves substantially more money in doing so, and also made really good money adding that extra year via NIL. 

NIL is impacting the late rounds but that will simply be layered in by next year. Guys that chose to stay this year will be there next year, so on and so forth. 

[TonyTexas 10,682]

14 minutes ago, Mantis Toboggan, MD said:

Mr. Irrelevant isnt’t guaranteed anything above his $100k or so signing bonus. He could get cut and make nothing more. Many late round picks get cut and don’t make shit.

You’re correct. I was under the misconception that draftee contracts were 100% guaranteed. My bad. 

[Bevo 13,820]

20 minutes ago, closetojumping said:

NIL is impacting the late rounds but that will simply be layered in by next year. Guys that chose to stay this year will be there next year, so on and so forth. 

It seems like this would be obvious - I guess not.

[Rip76 5,009]

Holy crap

 

[Bevo 13,820]

Related? 10 people shot at Sanford bar, 16-year-old in custody

 

https://www.wesh.com/article/deputies-10-people-shot-outside-sanford-bar-16-year-old-in-custody/60627908

[boilerhorn 1,602]

5 hours ago, Fud said:

It’s depth this year with an eye towards starting 2-3 years down the road

One of the draft guys on TV said that he basically doesn’t have an ACL in one of his knees. He might not make it to his second contract 

Missed that detail.

[TonyTexas 10,682]

Tank needs to go to better places

Edited April 28 by TonyTexas

[Hank Kingsley 21,598]

Holy shit. Thank god he's ok. 

 

[TonyTexas 10,682]

13 minutes ago, Bevo said:

Related? 10 people shot at Sanford bar, 16-year-old in custody

I would say so unless Sanford is Florida’s version of Fallujah 

[Macklemore 2,945]

5 minutes ago, TonyTexas said:

Tank needs to go to better places

Holy shit glad he is ok. Agree with this. Tank please stick with going to nice clubs that have bottle service and lots of hot white/Latin girls in the future.

[Rip76 5,009]

I guess we were closer that we thought to needing Worthy.

[billfromlaketravis 11,784]

44 minutes ago, Macklemore said:

Holy shit glad he is ok. Agree with this. Tank please stick with going to nice clubs that have bottle service and lots of hot white/Latin girls in the future.

Well, that’s oddly specific. 

[msucolt45 4,213]

As a Cowboys fan and looking at this year’s draft. I like the Texans picks “better” as their picks all came from “proven schools” where it seems like my Cowboys are always trying to find “diamonds in the rough!”

Hook’em!!!

[Evil Bill Obrien 3,493]

13 minutes ago, billfromlaketravis said:

Well, that’s oddly specific. 

And as someone who met D Hopkins at a bar in Midtown couple nights before a Sunday Night Football game...accurate...

Going to hell for it but laughing very hard at this:

 

 

[tx 3 putt 78,464]

 

[Zeus 6,753]

 

 

 

[tx 3 putt 78,464]

 

[ButtFumble 5,246]

 

 

last I checked when you hear that sound it is time to ask for your tab and leave

[Evil Bill Obrien 3,493]

6 hours ago, ButtFumble said:

 

 

last I checked when you hear that sound it is time to ask for your tab and leave

[Fud 9,696]

 

[Fud 9,696]

 

[The Earl of Texas 3,211]

In my opinion, nothing to dislike about this draft. The good teams are always picking random guys that the 'experts' disagree with, and then later people are like "how did the Patriots get Guy X' or whatever so unconcerned about noise in the blogosphere.

I will say this - anyone criticizing the Lassiter pick needs to go check out his film & resume. This guy is a killer, and basically everything beside his 40 time is premium. Modern NFL is a game in need of good nickelback play, and you also need that guy to be able to provide run support.

[Bevo 13,820]

6 hours ago, Fud said:

 

 

That is a lot of cap space for a DT. Will a DT be our only remaining FA signing? I assume that it will be for Aaron Donald for 1 year at 4.5M.

Edited April 29 by Bevo

[tx 3 putt 78,464]

We have flexibility 

[Dutchrudder 11,227]

They still need a Safety, and Justin Simmons is still a free agent.  They really need to get someone like him, because that USC safety shouldn't be starting for a couple years. He's a project like most of the guys in this draft, but it would be nice to get a Probowler for a year or two in the meantime. 

They might need to re-sign Steven Nelson too. He should be cheap at this point, and he's a good option to have as a #3 CB.