Picking a cornerback would calm qualms
Are the Texans comfortable entering the 2022 season with only the cornerbacks they currently have on the roster? This is a key question as the rebuilding franchise nears Thursday’s start of the NFL draft in Las Vegas, with general manager Nick Caserio and coach Lovie Smith currently scheduled to turn in names for the No. 3 and No. 13 overall selections.
Smith gave his point of view two weeks ago when, at the start of voluntary offseason workouts, the Texans’ former defensive coordinator said, “We can’t play the type of football that we want to play until we get better at the cornerback position.”
The Texans signed seven-year veteran Steven Nelson a day later. But beyond Nelson, there is still no other cornerback under contract who has established himself as a consistent starter at the position for multiple seasons.
It’s clear Houston must improve its pass defense. The Texans surrendered the third-most explosive pass plays (20-plus yards) last season, and they’ve added in free agency four defensive backs who could bolster a position group that includes Desmond King, who moved to the outside for the first time in his career in 2021, and Lonnie Johnson, who has switched between safety and cornerback with inconsistent play at both positions in three seasons.
Caserio signed journeyman Isaac Yiadom, 26, who was once a consistent starter for the Broncos and Giants. The secondyear executive claimed former Cowboys cornerback Reggie Robinson, 25, who has yet to record a defensive snap in the NFL. M.J. Stewart, who signed a two-year deal in March, played cornerback and safety for the Browns, but he hasn’t played more than 44 percent of his team’s defensive snaps in a given season since being drafted in the second round by the Buccaneers in 2018.
All three of those players had been acquired by the time Smith made his statement. Nelson, 29, gave the Texans an established veteran who’s logged 62 career starts in the last four seasons with the Chiefs, Steelers and Eagles. He has played in eight career playoff games, starting six. But Nelson was Philadelphia’s No. 2 cornerback last year opposite Darius Slay. Are the Texans where they want to be at cornerback after signing Nelson?
“No matter who we have on our team, we’re always going to try to improve,” Smith said Tuesday. “So that will always be the case. We’re better with Steve out there. He’s proven. He’s been a good football player in the league for a while. Thought he fit the profile of what we’re looking for. When we brought him in, we got a chance to spend time with him, talk to him, check out his football knowledge. All of that says this can be a good marriage. So it’s good to see him out there for the first time. But we’re better at the cornerback position now.”
Smith was expectedly coy. He wasn’t going to outright say whether the Texans will spend one of their two first-round picks on LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. or Cincinnati’s Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner. That the Texans are “always going to try to improve” can be easily applied to other positional needs on the offensive and defensive line and at running back, wide receiver and safety.
The Texans have already built out their draft board, and Caserio said they’re proceeding carefully not to select players solely based on need and instead “pick good football players that are going to enhance your overall team.”
The rebuilding franchise has the opportunity to snag one of the two top offensive tackles in the draft — North Carolina State’s Ikem Ekownu or Alabama’s Evan Neal — and it’s highly unlikely the Texans, who must improve upon their franchise-worst run game, will be able to pick either offensive lineman at No. 13 if they instead choose Stingley or Gardner at No. 3.
Perhaps the Texans would still be in range to draft Mississippi State offensive tackle Charles Cross at No. 13. But with several teams reportedly interested in the 6-4, 307-pound lineman within the top 10 picks, Houston would likely have to assemble a package of picks to trade up and select Cross.
NFL teams often organize their draft boards by shelves of prospects who have similar grades. Unless a run of cornerbacks occurs ahead of the No. 13 pick, the Texans could still have a shot at selecting a high-tier corner like Washington’s Trent McDuffie if they so choose. At 510, 193 pounds, McDuffie is somewhat undersized, but he possesses the reputation of a physical tackler, which appeals to Smith’s values at the position.
Coaches were permitted to work with players starting Tuesday, when the Texans began their second phase of voluntary workouts, and King said Smith told the cornerbacks the three things he expected from them: Play smart, play tough and play physical. Cornerbacks often play zone coverage in Smith’s defense and are expected to react to game action quickly and physically.
“If you ain’t tough and don’t want to tackle, (Smith’s) not going to play you anyway,” said Tavierre Thomas, who established himself as Houston’s nickel corner last season. “You’ve just gotta want to be out there and want to win.”
Thomas, 26, signed a two-year contract with the Texans after gaining his footing in the league with the Browns as a special teams stalwart. He and King were two of Houston’s top four tacklers in 2021, which underlines both their willingness to be physical and the problematic frequency of ball carriers entering the defense’s second level.
King began the season as Houston’s nickel corner, but the defense’s needs for better play on the outside were glaring enough that Smith bumped him to the defensive perimeter in place of Vernon Hargreaves starting in Week 4 against the Bills. Thomas filled in at nickel, Hargreaves was cut in November, and the two defensive backs started every game the rest of the season, providing an uncommon stability for a struggling defense that often cycled players in search of answers.
If the Texans do draft a cornerback in the first round, several players in the secondary could shift. The first-round corner would be expected to start, and if it is opposite Nelson, King and Thomas could find themselves competing for the nickel corner position.
Change is certainly necessary for a Texans pass defense that surrendered the NFL’s thirdmost yards per pass attempt (7.5), eighth-highest completion percentage (66.48 percent) and 11thmost passing yards per game (242.2) last season. The incumbent secondary must embrace any ensuing competition.
“I go in thinking it’s competition every day,” Thomas said. “Whoever they bring in, I’m going to keep my head down, play how I play, listen to Lovie Smith, and the sky’s the limit.”