The Houston Texans have twin first-round picks thanks to the Deshaun Watson trade with the Cleveland Browns. General manager Nick Caserio can make real strides towards completing the rebuild.
According to Pete Prisco from CBS Sports, the Texans use their first pick in the 2022 NFL draft to take Alabama tackle Evan Neal at No. 3 overall.
They restructured the contract of Laremy Tunsil to keep him at left tackle, so I have them taking Neal and playing him on the right side. He is a power player who would give them a good tackle tandem.
Taking Neal to play right tackle would be a horrible idea considering the club doesn’t want to move former 2019 first-round pick Tytus Howard back to the interior offensive line. Houston saw last season that Howard’s natural position is on the perimeter, and drafting Neal that high would relegate Howard back inside.
Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux goes the very next pick to the New York Jets. Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton goes No. 7 overall to the New York Giants.
By the time the Texans pick again at No. 13 overall, they are in place to fix the defense, which they do by taking Utah linebacker Devin Lloyd.
Landing a run-and-chase linebacker who can also rush the passer would be a good move for this young team. Texans need players at a lot of spots, so take one of the best in this draft.
Lloyd’s characterization, according to Prisco, makes him seem like former Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons, who had a stupendous rookie season in 2021. The Texans could have really boosted their pass coverage if they had taken Hamilton at No. 3 overall rather than Neal.
The first quarterback off the board is Kenny Pickett to the Carolina Panthers at No. 6 overall. Malik Willis goes to the Atlanta Falcons at No. 8 overall.
