The Houston Texans have a chance to grab a first-round pass rusher with their No. 3 overall pick, and do not hesitate to turn in that card.
According to Tom Fornelli from CBS Sports, the Texans have a shot to take Kayvon Thibodeaux and have no reservations about taking the former Oregon defensive ed.
Thibodeaux is my top player in this draft. It’s not just his athleticism and production, but his versatility. He can get after the QB, but he can also kick inside to the interior, disrupt from there, and drop back into coverage. If he hadn’t been dealing with injuries this season, I don’t think there’d be any question about who the top player in this class is.
Aidan Hutchinson from Michigan went No. 2 overall to the Detroit Lions in the mock. The New York Jets followed the Texans by taking a player often linked to Houston in other mock drafts in safety Kyle Hamilton from Notre Dame.
How the Texans were able to get Thibodeaux, according to the mock, starts with the Jacksonville Jaguars, who take Alabama tackle Evan Neal with the No. 1 overall pick. If the Jaguars indeed use their No. 1 overall selection for Neal or even North Carolina State’s Ikem Ekwonu, it would be the first time since 2013 a team went with a tackle as the draft’s top pick when the Kansas City Chiefs selected Eric Fisher.
Thibodeaux would bolster Houston’s pass rush, which already has a decent edge defender in Jonathan Greenard. The former 2020 third-round pick from Florida notched 8.0 sacks in 2021, leading the team, and earning the most sacks since outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus’ 7.5 in 2019. Bringing in Thibodeaux would allow Greenard more one-on-one opportunities. Houston finished 32 sacks last season, tied with the Jaguars for the fifth-fewest in the NFL. Adding a pass rush would help new coach Lovie Smith’s commitment to takeaways.
