Bryce Young has been linked to the Houston Texans longer than Elon Musk has been in control of Twitter.
The interest is real. The problem is the Texans do not have the No. 1 overall pick; the equally quarterback deficient Carolina Panthers leadoff the 2023 NFL draft. Houston’s selection of Young ultimately comes down to whether or not the Panthers believe they can find value in another signal caller.
According to Todd McShay from ESPN, the Panthers do avoid Young and go for Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud. Houston is free and clear to take the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner.
Young is still my top-ranked quarterback, and there’s a decent chance he is on top of Houston’s board, too. The Texans had arguably the league’s worst pass game last season, with a 32nd-ranked QBR (26.0) and 28th-ranked completion percentage (60.8%). Young would be a big improvement over Davis Mills, thanks to poise in the pocket, the ability to hit any throw and really good composure under pressure. He can also create when things go south, evidenced by his 95.7 QBR outside the pocket last season (third in the FBS). A lot will be made of his smaller 5-foot-10, 204-pound frame, but the rest of the package is special.This is another team that still has work to do around its new QB, though. I like the Dalton Schultz addition, and Young played with John Metchie III at Alabama, but Houston is still missing that true WR1.
With the No. 12 overall pick — obtained via 2022 offseason trade with the Cleveland Browns — the Texans shore up their edge defense with Georgia outside linebacker Nolan Smith.
The Texans give Young a young weapon to grow with as Houston uses its No. 33 overall pick in Round 2 to take Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt as there was a run on receivers throughout the first round.
