D
Houston Texans
The Texans got the worse of every deal, and it shows in the D.
by Powerful ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 2 steals
· 6 reaches
Call it a hunch or call it a gamble, but the Texans spent pick 164 on De'Corian Clark, a name most had 31 spots down the list. The math is unkind, and the D follows.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. A whole weekend of picks and interior defensive lineman is somehow still a want.
They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
The verdict is not kind, and fairly so; this class has a hill to climb.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 23 they get a bendy edge with upside, outstanding value to boot. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In Round 1, Pick 24 they get a ballhawk on the outside. Need was not the driver here.
Troy Franklin at pick 33 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A reach on Payton Wilson in slot 59; the board had better options right there. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
By-the-book stuff, Marist Liufau at the 85th overall pick squarely in line with his ranking. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
They went early on Malik Mustapha in pick No. 123, and the value did not follow. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
The board had cheaper options than Jaheim Bell at slot 127, and it noticed. A need, and now a little less of one.
This one needs a full-page explanation: De'Corian Clark in Round 5, Pick 28, miles early. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They paid up for Carson Steele at the Round 7 slot when waiting would have done the job. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
A conviction pick on Tanner McLachlan at pick 248 that the board grades a round light. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.