We are a little over a week into the meat of the offseason, and one thing is absolutely certain — the Houston Texans are shopping in very different aisles and viewed very differently by players and media around the NFL. They've grown up quickly, in one season to be exact, and grown into a rising force heading into the 2024 season.

They signed defensive end Danielle Hunter from the Vikings, and they traded for running back Joe Mixon from the Bengals. These are two transactions that had zero chance of happening at any point in 2021 or 2022 or even heading into the 2023 season. Now, these are the moves that are defining the offseason and shaping the roster.

As we learned over this past weekend, even the moves the Texans are trying unsuccessfully to make are helping define the franchise and announce to the rest of the league "WE ARE HERE!" Former Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen was traded for a fourth round pick to the Bears on Friday, and he revealed in his introductory press conference with the Bears on Saturday that the Texans were one of the teams that were in the fight to land his services:

Sounds like another Tyreek Hill situation happened to the #Jets.

Keenan Allen revealed at his presser that there ‘were a couple of teams that they [the #Chargers] would allow me I guess to say where I wanted to go. I only had like 2 [other] teams.’

When pressed later he said… pic.twitter.com/IzzaKjJEGx

— Paul Andrew Esden Jr (@BoyGreen25) March 16, 2024

It's too bad this trade didn't go down, because the Texans would have been even more of a media darling than they were the day after the Hunter signing and the Mixon trade. Still, I think the Texans being in on Allen, a possible future Hall of Fame receiver, till the very end sends a great message and gives us some talking points about where the Texans are at this juncture of the offseason.

Here are a few thoughts, in light of the Allen news:

The Texans are willing to take big swings
The price for Allen wasn't exorbitant. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC, the Texans offered a 2025 third round pick and a swap of sixth rounders. The Chargers chose the Bears' offer. However, Allen's contract for 2024 is for $18 million, and he is not taking a pay cut. That's why he was traded from the Chargers. When the Texans signed Hunter, it felt like that was their one big splurge for this offseason, but make no mistake, Allen would have come with a sizable cost attached, and Nick Caserio and DeMeco Ryans were willing to take it. This makes the next several weeks incredibly interesting, just knowing they see themselves as able to fit in another big swing.

Texans are looking for a certain type of wide receiver
The Texans seem set on the outside at wide receiver for 2024, with Nico Collins and Tank Dell. It would appear that slot receiver is an area they feel they can improve and Allen's skillset is perfectly suited for a slot receiver role in this offense. Wilson confirmed as much on X.com over the weekend:

On #Texans and wide receiver position in light of Keenan Allen comments, my understanding is what they're looking for is highly specific. And many of the players they've been linked to in other trade rumors are inaccurate per sources close to respective situations. Unavailable…

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) March 16, 2024

C.J. Stroud will not take a back seat when it comes to acquiring help
I think many folks view Stroud as the elite level of quarterback that can raise the level of average players to good, and good players to great. Sometimes, when a player has such a transformative effect on his surroundings, the tendency of the front office is to throw resources elsewhere, since "C.J. doesn't need the help." Well, the Texans clearly don't appear to be operating that way. Stroud will not be penalized by his greatness. He will be given resources, and certainly will be given resources while his salary is on the very inexpensive rookie contract terms.

Jim Harbaugh may still have some Michigan in him
I'll attribute credit for this one to my SportsRadio 610 friend and colleague Landry Locker. It's always fun when NFL transactions feed into wild conspiracy theories, and Locker's theory on why the Chargers chose to send Allen to Chicago instead of Houston (who was offering a better package) is a doozy! Locker theorizes that Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh, a proud Michigan Wolverine, doesn't want to do anything that would help C.J. Stroud, a proud Ohio State Buckeye! You know what? NOT the craziest theory in the world! I could totally see Harbaugh being that petty.

Listen to Sean Pendergast on SportsRadio 610 from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. weekdays. Also, follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/SeanTPendergast, on Instagram at instagram.com/sean.pendergast, and like him on Facebook at facebook.com/SeanTPendergast.