One of the safety nets for the Nick Caserio era has been that he has spent the first two offseasons cleaning up the Houston Texans’ nuclear waste, whether from Bill O’Brien’s crack at playing in the front office or handling a disgruntled former face of the franchise.
The Texans picked twice in Round 1 for the second straight season. Their former quarterback is getting a second chance with the Cleveland Browns. All of the toxic waste has been cleared.
According to Trevor Sikkema from Pro Football Focus, the biggest takeaway from the 2023 draft was how Caserio took a big risk with the selections of quarterback C.J. Stroud and defensive end Will Anderson at Nos. 2-3 overall.
The Texans gave up a lot of future draft capital to select twice in the top three of the 2023 NFL Draft, coming away with C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr. Both were seen as top-10 type of draft picks, so the value is fine, but if the clock wasn’t already ticking on general manager Nick Caserio, it is now. With 2024 looking like a strong class in a lot of ways, the Texans have to hope these two players are all they were drafted to be. If they are, they will be the cornerstones of each side of the ball.
The risk won’t set back the Texans too far if he is wrong. Either Houston gets a premier edge rusher without an effective passer, or the Texans get a playmaking quarterback with a dud on the edge. It would take a colossal failing beyond anyone’s control if both Stroud and Anderson did not live up to their potential.
However, if the risks from 2023 don’t appear to pay off, 2024 would be a perfect stopping off point for the organization. The Texans’ draft capital includes a selection in the first three rounds as opposed to waiting until Round 3 to make an initial selection, which is what Caserio had to work with in 2021.
