Houston Texans Bet On Future, With the Future
Mina Kimes and Domonique Foxworth were right, but as a Texans fan, you shouldn’t care.
The Houston Texans just finished the 2023 regular season as AFC South Champions, earning a home game in the first round of the playoffs. Going into this campaign, a feat that no one would have predicted or expected. The team had just earned the second overall pick in the previous draft after finishing the season with just three wins.
Of course, the people in the organization will tell you that this result is exactly what they had in mind. That belief can be proven and tied to a very specific moment, the 2023 NFL Draft. More specifically, the 3rd overall pick.
Going into the draft, there were rumors that teams were looking to move up to the first pick for no brainer quarterback prospect Bryce Young. Once the Carolina Panthers made the move to trade up, it was almost a certainty they would take Young. Then, the question was which quarterback would Houston take. CJ Stroud? Anthony Richardson? Even some chatter around Will Levis.
Draft day came, the Panthers took Young. Yawn. Shocker. With the second pick, the Texans took Stroud. The Ohio State product who had wowed in his last college game in a tough loss against eventual champion Georgia.
Obviously, a point that can’t be ignored. Stroud went on to have one of the greatest seasons from a rookie quarterback in the league’s history. Changing the team’s signal caller situation from purgatory to penthouse and solving the most elusive position on the roster.
Their next pick would come in the first round at 12. Well, it WAS going to be at 12. GM Nick Caserio and rookie head coach Demeco Ryans wanted to go big, and they would. Arizona answered their call about a trade, and obliged them.
The Texans would take Alabama product Will Anderson at three. Widely considered the top defensive prospect in the draft and compared to DeMarcus Ware by long time evaluator Lance Zierlein.
Anderson had a good rookie season. He finished the season with 7 sacks and 10 TFL despite missing 2 games. Bill Barnwell points out in more detail just how impactful Anderson truly has been. To put his impact into words, when he is not on the field, the defense goes from the “third-best pass defense to comfortably becomingly the worst,” per Barnwell.
Stroud and Anderson as individuals have made a massive impact on the team. The seven win improvement can largely be tied to their arrival and performance. And that is great, especially with the investment the team made to move up to get Anderson.
But the real sticking point, and moment previously referred to, that should stand out is the conviction the organization had to make the move to trade up. For a team that is rebuilding, more bites at the apple, especially early in the draft, are gold. And the Texans gave up multiple early round opportunities for Anderson.
That trade brought a continued onslaught of memes as it was another moment to point out Houston’s ineptitude. Why on earth would a struggling franchise do this? In theory it would just make the climb out of the NFL depths longer and more treacherous.
“How good do the Texans think they are?” Mina Kimes asked on her podcast, The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny. Which is a fair question after the point just raised. A rebuilding team moving multiple early picks, for one player, is questionable.
“I’ve yet to hear a coherent argument on the other side of that,” Dominique Foxworth added. Kimes and Foxworth were evaluating the idea that the price for the third pick was justified because the Texans were somehow paying that to confirm getting Stroud, as a package deal of sorts.
Kimes went on to say, “the only way this works out, is if you’re good”. And then reiterated, “the only way it works is if they’re good, and even then, its still an f-ton of draft capital to give up”.
Indeed. The argument can be made that the Texans are good. Are they considered one of the best rosters in the league? No. Are they hosting a playoff game after winning their division? Yes.
And there’s no argument that it is a lot of draft capital to move. The Texans are happy to have Anderson. But as Foxworth said, it’s too soon to determine whether or not the value Anderson provides is more than what those picks could have been.
But, if you’re a Texans fan, f- them picks. Does having more picks in April make watching the draft more fun? Of course. More to discuss, more to analyze, more to second guess.
In the now, in reality, your team is in the playoffs. Anderson is a player to build around and you have your franchise quarterback in Stroud. Along with that, fellow rookie Tank Dell burst on to the scene and was pushing Stroud for OROY. Nico Collins has produced like a number one receiver with Stroud running the offense too.
Most importantly, you’re not cheering for a franchise perceived as a never ending joke. One of the more famous draft commercials shows the Texans offense with parts of the offensive line literally missing because of how many sacks David Carr endured. And recently, Deshaun Watson. Not sure elaboration is required there.
Bill O’Brien created a trade reputation cloud that continues to hover over any deal the team makes. From the Deandre Hopkins trade, to allegedly failing to trade a draft pick and having to panic draft Jonathan Greenard. Though, having Greenard has worked out well.
Foxworth referred to the Texans as “America’s darling”, on his own podcast, The Domonique Foxworth Show. Due to the fact that they are overcoming and beating expectations. And actually have likeable people, like a small receiver named Tank.
The winning is great. The draft picks working out is great. The perception of the franchise and the general good vibes being carried forward are the best thing to take out of this season.
Kimes and Foxworth were right. That’s a lot of picks to move. But a season later, the Texans and their fans should be happy with where things are. A feeling that has been absent for some time. And looks like a feeling that will remain.