We have finally made it through the 2023 NFL Draft. Who better to discuss then the team with the 2nd overall draft pick, the Houston Texans. If you remember back to the end of the regular season last year, then you remember that this could have been the first overall draft pick but a 32-31 win in week 18 gave that pick to the Chicago Bears who then used it to trade for D.J. Moore and additional draft picks sending this year’s 1st round overall to the Carolina Panthers. (Phew…that’s a few moving parts) All of that boils down to the Texans getting the 2nd overall pick where they drafted their new QB C.J Stroud out of Ohio State.
Why did the Houston Texans draft C.J. Stroud?
That draft pick took care of the QB issue that Houston faced last year. That issue is that last season they couldn’t get their offense started. Davis Mills essentially did exactly what most of us thought he would do. He matched his prior years stats which were not good enough to win many games and aren’t good enough to keep your starting job in the NFL. Houston’s offense finished 2nd to last in total yards per game, rushing yards per game and average points per game and in the bottom ten in passing yards per game. Of course, that is not all on Mills and they have a lot of work to do putting other pieces in place during the draft and offseason.
THE TEXANS SELECT C.J. STROUD WITH THE NO. 2 OVERALL PICK 😤 #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/8dbB93x3Iw
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 28, 2023
Were the Houston Texans healthy last year?
Surprisingly for the Texans given their final record overall, their health was not one of their top issues when you consider it against other teams struggles in that area. Finishing the season with an average Banged Up Score (BUS) of 75.87 gave them an advantage that they unfortunately didn’t use to its full effect. They finished just second in the AFC South with a weekly BUS positional average of 11.3 out of 32 teams. Jacksonville was the divisional rival winner with an average BUS position of 2.3 out of 32 which also led the league overall. Houston’s’ rank gave them the 9th overall weekly health ranking. Not a bad spot to be, considering 6 of the top 10 teams made the playoffs.
With football being the contact sport that it is, finishing 9th does not mean they didn’t have injuries that caused problems. As mentioned earlier putting points on the board was difficult for Houston and the injuries across the receiving corps didn’t help. Brandin Cooks, Nico Collins and John Metchie III all dealt with health issues causing them missed time. Metchie missed the entire season to Leukemia while Cooks (Wrist/Calf) and Collins (Groin, Foot) each had multiple injuries including soft tissue trouble which can be devastating at their position. A high ankle sprain to rookie RB Dameon Pierce ended with him on IR and caused him to miss the last four games of the season as well.
On the defensive side, DE Jonathan Greenard (Calf) and Maliek Collins (Chest) spent time nursing injuries leaving a few gaps in the defensive line while Derek Stingley and Christian Harris both tried to overcome Hamstring injuries. Hamstring injuries are notoriously fickle and often if not treated fully can result in re-aggravation and extended missed time. They also take time (frequently a lot of it) to fully heal. This was the case for Stingley who missed week 11 onward to allow his injury the time it needed.
Even with these injuries Houston escaped rather unscathed compared to many teams. After starting week 1 with an 86.4 BUS score placing them 10th that week, they kept a consistent trend never dropping below a 70.3. Even though they were unable to reach the 90s they also never dropped so low that health became a prime hindrance for them. Something they will ultimately look to repeat this coming year. Houston is hoping that their trade up to take Will Anderson Jr. with the 3rd overall pick, the addition of two WR’s, O-linemen help and some defensive strength will help them develop a winning team come this season.
