Draft History: Texans provide a unique look at best and worst pick lists
The Houston Texans are the newest NFL franchise, beginning play in the 2002 season. Since they are a relatively young team, the Texans don’t have the same draft history of older clubs, many of which have multiple Hall of Famers on their “best” lists. The opposite is also true, since Houston has not had many bad first-round picks to grace their “worst” list. The top 10 starts with the team’s first pick in its expansion year.
BEST
10. (tie) David Carr, QB (Round 1, Pick 1 in 2002) and Kareem Jackson, CB (Round 1, Pick 20 in 2010) - Carr was a Heisman Trophy finalist in 2001 after passing for 4,839 yards and 46 touchdowns as a senior at Fresno State. He was the first overall selection in the 2002 Draft and the franchise’s first draft pick. Carr might also have been one of the unluckier quarterbacks in NFL history. He was a talented quarterback, but got pummeled behind a terrible offensive line, even by expansion team standards. Carr was sacked 249 times in five seasons with Houston. He led the league in that statistic three times, including 76 as a rookie, which is a league record, and 68 in 2005, which is the third-highest single-season total in league history. Although he ranks second in team history with 13,381 yards and third with 59 touchdowns, Carr compiled a 22-53 record as a starter and the team did not make the playoffs in his tenure. He signed with Carolina in 2007 and played with the Panthers, Giants, and 49ers over the next six years (making just four starts) before retiring in 2012. His younger brother, Derek, is a quarterback with the Raiders, and David is now an assistant coach under another younger brother, Darren, at Bakersfield Christian High School.
Jackson was a member of Alabama’s National Championship victory over Texas in 2009. He played 132 games in nine seasons with the Texans. Jackson ranks second in team history with 16 interceptions and three returned for touchdowns. He also had 88 passes defensed (second on the franchise list), 559 tackles (third) and six forced fumbles. Jackson signed with the Broncos in 2019.
9. (tie) DeMeco Ryans, LB (Round 2, Pick 33 in 2006) and Brian Cushing, LB (Round 1, Pick 15 in 2009) - Ryans graduated from Alabama a year before Jackson arrived. He was named an All-American and the SEC Defensive Player of the Year as a senior in 2005. After drafting Ryans with the first pick of the second round, the Texans moved him from outside to middle linebacker. He excelled at that spot, registering 636 tackles, including four seasons with 100 or more and a league-high 126 solo stops in 2006. The two-time Pro Bowler also had 8½ sacks and eight fumble recoveries. Ryans was traded to the Eagles in 2012 before retiring in 2016. Ryans now works for the 49ers as their inside linebackers coach.
Cushing was an All-American and an All-Pac-10 selection at USC, where he played under future Seahawks coach Pete Carroll. In the NFL, he is Houston’s all-time leader with 665 tackles, registering 100 or more three times in his nine-year career. Cushing was a Pro Bowler after posting 133 tackles, 10 passes defensed, four interceptions and four sacks in his 2009 rookie season. His one blemish was two suspensions for performance-enhancing substances (a four-game suspension in 2010 and a 10-game ban in 2017). He retired after the Texans released him in early 2018, and he now works as a strength and conditioning consultant with the team.
8. Owen Daniels, TE (Round 4, Pick 98 in 2005) - Daniels converted from quarterback to tight end while at Wisconsin, and the move paid off, as he became the most productive tight end in Texans history. He ranks third in team history and first among tight ends with 385 receptions, 4,617 yards, and 29 touchdowns. The two-time Pro Bowler left the Texans in 2013 after eight years and spent one year each with Baltimore and Denver, ending his career with an appearance in a Broncos win over the Panthers in Super Bowl 50.
7. Jadeveon Clowney, LB/DE (Round 1, Pick 1 in 2014) - The Texans have selected first overall in the NFL Draft three times, with Clowney being the most recent of the picks. He was a high school All-American in 2010, was named SEC Defensive Player of the Year at South Carolina in 2012 and earned two college All-American honors (2012 and ’13). Clowney lost 12 games in his rookie season after suffering a torn meniscus in his knee that required microfracture surgery. He amassed 29 sacks over the next four seasons, which ranks fourth in franchise history. A three-time Pro Bowler in Houston, Clowney was traded to Seattle before the 2019 season and he is currently a free agent.
6. Deshaun Watson, QB (Round 1, Pick 12 in 2017) - Like Clowney, Watson was a high school All-American who was an All-American and the ACC Player of the Year in 2015. The following season, he led Clemson to the National Championship, totaling 420 yards and three touchdowns passing, as well as another score rushing in a win over Alabama in the title game. Watson was a two-time Heisman Trophy finalist, finishing third behind Derrick Henry and Christian McCaffrey in 2015 and fourth in 2016 (won by Lamar Jackson). He has quickly become a star in Houston, ranking third with 9,716 passing yards and second with 71 touchdowns in just three seasons as a pro, and he already is third with 14 rushing scores. After splitting starts in his rookie season with Tom Savage due to a torn ACL, Watson has been a Pro Bowler in each of the past two years. He has a 24-13 career record and ended the 2019 season on a high note, throwing for 388 yards and totaling three scores in a 51-31 loss to the Chiefs in an AFC Division Round game.
5. Mario Williams, DE (Round 1, Pick 1 in 2006) - Houston’s second top overall pick, Williams held the North Carolina State record for sacks until he was passed by Bradley Chubb in 2017. “Super Mario” was a two-time Pro Bowler who ranks second in franchise history with 53 sacks, including 14 in 2007 and 12 the following season. He signed with the Bills in 2012, and earned two more Pro Bowl selections and an All-Pro nod in 2014. Williams signed with Miami in 2016 and spent one season with the Dolphins before retiring.
4. Duane Brown, T (Round 1, Pick 26 in 2008) - Brown converted from tight end to offensive tackle while at Virginia Tech, and he played with the Hokies during their 2007 ACC Championship season. Brown is a three-time Pro Bowler and 2012 All-Pro, and played 133 games with the Texans, which is tied for third-most in team history. After he held out the first six games of the 2017 season, Houston traded Brown to Seattle, where he has spent the past three seasons.
3. DeAndre Hopkins, WR (Round 1, Pick 27 in 2013) - Not many people can say they have had quite as traumatic a childhood as Hopkins. His father died in a car accident after hydroplaning when Hopkins was five months old, and his mother was rendered blind from boiling liquid being thrown in her face by a woman who was having an affair with her boyfriend in 2002. “Nuk” (a nickname stemming from his love of that brand of pacifier as a baby) ranks second in Clemson history with 3,020 yards and his 27 receiving touchdowns are tied for the most (along with current Chiefs star Sammy Watkins and potential 2020 high draft pick, Tee Higgins). With Houston, he was a Pro Bowler and an All-Pro in each of the past three seasons. Hopkins sits second in Texans history in all three main receiving categories (632 catches, 8,602 yards and 54 scores, including a league-leading 13 in 2017). He has appeared in six playoff games and had his best performance in his last one (nine receptions for 118 yards in a loss to the Chiefs in the 2019 Division Round). Hopkins was sent to the Cardinals in a widely criticized trade on March 20, 2020.
2. Andre Johnson, WR (Round 1, Pick 3 in 2003) - Johnson ended his career with a 199-yard, two-score performance that helped the University of Miami beat Nebraska to win the National Championship in 2002. In Houston, he holds team records with 1,012 receptions, 13,597 yards, and 64 touchdowns. The seven-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro also led the NFL in catches and yards twice each. Johnson signed with the Colts in 2014 after 12 seasons with the Texans, and he spent one year apiece with Indianapolis and Tennessee before he retired in 2016. Johnson is Houston’s all-time leader with 169 games played. He now runs a foundation that helps children in single-parent families and is a special adviser with the Texans.
1. J. J. Watt, DE (Round 1, Pick 11 in 2011) - After being a little-used tight end at Central Michigan, Watt transferred to Wisconsin, where he earned All-American honors in 2010. He started out as a durable superstar in his first five seasons, winning three Defensive Player of the Year awards and leading the league in sacks twice. However, he faced injuries in recent seasons, including a herniated disc in 2016, a tibial plateau fracture in his leg in 2017 and a torn pectoral in 2019. Watt has earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors in the same season five times, including four in a row from 2012 to 2015 and again in 2018, when he posted 16 sacks and led the NFL with seven forced fumbles. He is the Texans’ all-time leader with 96 sacks and 23 forced fumbles, and he ranks first among defensive players with 15 fumble recoveries. Despite missing most of the 2017 season, Watt raised more than $40 million for the Houston area, which was hit by Hurricane Harvey. His humanitarian contributions earned him the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, along with Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year honors. In addition to his own sporting accolades, Watt’s two brothers, T.J and Derek, play in the NFL, and he recently married Kealia Ohai, who plays in the National Women’s Soccer League.
WORST
10. (tie) DeVier Posey, WR (Round 3, Pick 68 in 2012) and Jaelen Strong, WR (Round 3, Pick 70 in 2015) - Posey was a starting wide receiver with Ohio State, but his time in Columbus was marked by a four-game suspension for selling off game-worn uniforms. He had just 272 yards in 26 regular-season games with the Texans, but he caught his only career touchdown in a loss to the Patriots in a 2012 Division Round game. Posey was traded to the Jets in 2015, but was released before the season. He also signed with the Broncos in 2016, but was waived in the final round of roster cuts that August. Posey had his greatest success in Canada, earning Grey Cup MVP honors after setting a championship game record with a 100-yard touchdown catch for the Toronto Argonauts in a 27-24 win over the Calgary Stampeders in 2017. After a failed tryout with the Ravens in 2018, he played one year each with the BC Lions and Montreal Alouettes before signing with the Hamilton Tiger Cats as a free agent in February 2020.
Ironically enough, one of the picks that the Texans acquired from the Jets in the Posey trade was used on Strong, who totaled 157 catches for 2,287 yards and 17 touchdowns in two years at Arizona State and was named first-team All-Pac-12 in 2014. In two-plus seasons with the Texans, he posted just 292 yards and three scores while failing to earn significant playing time. Strong suffered an ankle sprain that cost him eight games in 2016 and was released early in the following season due in part to a one-game suspension for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy. He signed with the Jaguars later in the season and caught a touchdown in his only game. Jacksonville released him the following year, and despite having a tryout with the Browns in 2019, he has not played in the NFL since. Strong was also arrested for drug possession in 2016.
9. (tie) Charles Spencer, G (Round 3, Pick 65 in 2006) and Brandon Harris, CB (Round 2, Pick 60 in 2011) - Spencer is a former University of Pittsburgh product who played two games as a rookie before a broken leg sidelined him for the next two seasons. A lack of conditioning led to failures in tryouts with the Panthers and Jaguars in 2008, and his last football was in 2009 as a member of the Florida Tuskers of the short-lived United Football League. Spencer is now a real estate investor in Texas.
Harris was a first-team All-ACC member as a junior with the University of Miami in 2009. He played 31 games in three seasons with the Texans, recording 48 tackles and 10 passes defensed, but no interceptions. Harris played 11 games with Tennessee in 2014, then spent the next two seasons on the Titans and Dolphins practice squads. He went to Canada and was a teammate of Posey’s on the Grey Cup-winning Argonauts squad in 2017. Harris is now a graduate assistant defensive backs coach with Florida International University.
8. Dave Ragone, QB (Round 3, Pick 88 in 2003) - A Louisville product, Ragone was a three-time Conference USA Player of the Year (2000-02). He was not quite as successful as a pro. His only action was two starts as a rookie replacing David Carr, both resulting in losses. He played in NFL Europe in 2005, earning league Offensive MVP honors and leading the Berlin Thunder to World Bowl XIII, a 27-21 loss to the Amsterdam Admirals. Despite the performance, the Texans waived him and the Bengals signed him in 2006, but traded him to the Rams a month later. He was released before the season began, causing him to retire. Ragone has since gone into coaching, beginning with tutoring wide receivers and quarterbacks with the Hartford Colonials of the United Football League in 2010 (including future NFL starter Josh McCown). From there, he came back to the NFL as a position coach with the Titans and Redskins before joining the Bears in 2016. He is now the team’s passing game coordinator.
7. (tie) Bennie Joppru, TE (Round 2, Pick 41 in 2003) and C. J. Fiedorowicz, TE (Round 3, Pick 65 in 2014) - Joppru was a starting tight end at Michigan, but he did not have a catch in the NFL. He only played one game in four seasons with the Texans, but much of that was because of groin and knee injuries. After Houston released him in 2006, he spent a few weeks on Chicago’s practice squad before signing with Seattle. Joppru contributed solely on special teams during his 18 games with the Seahawks before being released in 2008 and retiring.
Fiedorowicz was another tight end who was well-regarded in college but did not produce as well in the professional ranks. He was a high school All-American in 2009, and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors at Iowa in 2013. Fiedorowicz totaled 89 catches, 881 yards, and six touchdowns in four seasons with the Texans, and also had a scoring catch in a loss to the Patriots in the 2016 AFC Division Round. His main problem was concussions, including three in the 2017 season alone, leading to his retirement the following year.
6. Vernand Morency, RB (Round 3, Pick 73 in 2005) - Morency was a two-sport star who was drafted in the 14th round of the 1998 Major League Baseball Draft by the Rockies and spent four years in Colorado’s minor league system before going to college and playing football at Oklahoma State. He played just 13 games in Houston before being traded to Green Bay early in the 2006 season. Morency retired in 2007 with 726 rushing yards and four touchdowns, as well as 404 receiving yards. He took after his parents and went into real estate after his playing career ended.
5. Kevin Johnson, CB (Round 1, Pick 16 in 2015) - Johnson played four years at Wake Forest, though he was forced to redshirt in 2011 after being academically ineligible. He played four years with the Texans, totaling 128 tackles, 14 passes defensed and one interception, but he missed all but one game in 2017 due to a concussion. Johnson signed with the Bills in 2019 and agreed to a one-year deal with the Browns on April 4, 2020.
4. Braxton Miller, WR (Round 3, Pick 85 in 2016) - Miller was a dual-threat quarterback at Ohio State, posting two seasons (2012 and ’13) with 2,000 passing and 1,000 rushing yards, earning Big Ten MVP awards both years. After redshirting due to a shoulder injury in 2014, he converted to receiver after losing his starting quarterback spot to Cardale Jones and J. T. Barrett, and played with the Buckeyes in 2015. Miller fell behind Andre Johnson and Will Fuller on Houston’s depth chart and had just 261 yards and two touchdowns in two seasons. He spent the past two seasons on practice squads in Philadelphia, Cleveland and Carolina before the Panthers released him due to an ankle injury in late 2019.
3. Tony Hollings, RB (Supplemental Round 2 in 2003) - Hollings suffered a knee injury as a freshman at Georgia Tech that required him to miss a year after surgery. He responded with 11 touchdowns in 2002 before suffering a torn ACL that ended his season early and caused him to miss the filing deadline for the NFL Draft. After being taken in the Supplemental Draft, Hollings was relegated to reserve and special teams play, totaling 149 yards in three seasons with the Texans. After Houston released Hollings, he spent a year in NFL Europe and two in the German Football League before he retired in 2009. Even worse, the Hollings selection caused the Texans to lose a second-round pick in the 2004 Draft.
2. Travis Johnson, DT (Round 1, Pick 16 in 2005) - Johnson was a high school All-American. He was a three-sport athlete (football, basketball, and track) and earned All-ACC honors as a senior with Florida State in 2004, but he also faced sexual assault charges (of which he was acquitted). Johnson had 111 tackles and one interceptions in 54 games with the Texans before he was traded to the Chargers in 2009. He spent two seasons in San Diego before retiring in 2010.
1. Amobi Okoye, DT (Round 1, Pick 10 in 2007) - The Nigerian-born Okoye came to the U. S. at age 12 and enrolled at Louisville at 16. He graduated before his 20th birthday and became the youngest first-round selection in NFL Draft history. Okoye played 62 games and posted 11 sacks in four years with the Texans. He signed with the Bears, where he spent two years. After missing the 2013 season with a brain inflammation that led to Okoye being placed in a medically induced coma, he signed with the Cowboys, but did not play. He spent the 2016 season on the inactive list with the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders and has not played professionally since.
All NFL statistics and awards courtesy of https://www.pro-football-reference.com/ and college football statistics and awards courtesy of https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/
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