In capturing just how popular the National Football League is outon the American sports landscape, there is a funny saying — the two most popular sports in America are the NFL and the NFL Draft. In other words, the NFL rules the calendar year round, which is pretty accurate.
In Houston, we’ve felt it acutely at both ends of the draft spectrum. In 2020 and 2021, the Texans didn’t have a first round pick — hell, in 2021, they didn’t have a first OR second round pick — and the draft was a serious downer. Conversely, in 2022 and 2023, the Texans had multiple first round picks, and it was fun as hell!
Next spring, the draft will settle somewhere in between those two mini-eras of Texans draft history. The team has one first round pick (Cleveland’s, from the Deshaun Watson trade), and more importantly, they SHOULDN’T need to be looking at quarterbacks, with this past April’s selection of C.J. Stroud. Put it this way — if they are looking at quarterbacks next spring, something has gone horribly wrong.
Still, it should be fun, as the team tries to fill in some of their remaining holes on the roster. To that end, and with college football just six weeks away, here are four names to circle for the Texans as we embark on the 2023 season:
EMEKA EGBUKA, WR, Ohio State
XAVIER WORTHY, WR, Texas
I think the Texans’ current wide receiver room gets a bit of a bad rap from pundits, where most of them rank it, as currently comprised, around the bottom of the league. It’s an unproven room, but has potential. That said, the need for more” big play” potential is real. Egbuka is a former teammate of Texans QB C.J. Stroud, so there is some chemistry there. He’s been overshadowed by Marvin Harrison, Jr., who would be a great pickup for any team, but Harrison is likely off the board by the third pick. In 2022, Egbuka caught 74 passes for 1,151 yards and 10 touchdowns, earning second-team All–Big Ten honors.
As for Worthy, he’s on the smaller side, at only 160 pounds, but he can fly and is scintillating in the open field. Over the past two seasons at Texas, Worthy has caught 122 passes for 1,741 yards and 21 touchdowns. His ability to attack the field vertically is something the Texans are missing right now. The comp would be the Texans’ selection of Will Fuller in the first round in 2016, hopefully minus the injury issues that dogged Fuller.
MAASON SMITH, DT, LSU
J.C. LATHAM, OL, Alabama
During his appearance on my radio show a few weeks back, Texans GM Nick Caserio said that his philosophy on roster building is to build “inside out,” meaning he wants to stockpile elite talent in the trenches on both sides of the football, offensive line and defensive line. The Texans can definitely use a young playmaker on defensive interior. Smith has only played eight games in two seasons at LSU, in large part due to an ACL injury suffered in Week 1 of 2022, celebrating a big play, of all things. Smith has the potential to be a pass rushing menace from the interior of the defensive front.
On the other side of the ball, the Texans may very well have a need at offensive tackle, if Tytus Howard leaves in free agency. Also, I’d be remiss not to include an Alabama player on a list like this, as Caserio has drafted four of them in the last two drafts. So why not combo the GM’s love for all things Bama with a love for big bodies up front?! Enter Latham, so is 20 years old, starts at right tackle, is massive (6-foot-6, 325 pounds), and has elite athleticism for his size.
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
