Are Nick Caserio and DeMeco Ryans finished putting together the roster?
Sometimes it pays to wait a minute and breathe before commenting on big news like the 53 man schedule. The Houston Texans don’t open play for another week and a half, so there is also time for the roster to shift some. It is easy to poke a few holes in the current version of the 53 and predict where there might be some adjustments.
Tradeable Assets
There are three ways to acquire players that you want after teams have done their final cut downs. The easiest way to get those players is to simply claim them off of waivers. Literally hundreds of players have been cut all at the same time. It’s a swap meet out there and there are more than a few players available that could fit holes the Texans currently have.
In particular, the Texans look a little weak at the linebacker spot and in the secondary. Yes, the Texans have players there, but the injury to Christian Harris and the fact that Jeff Okudah hasn’t played much either highlights the need for quality depth. The Texans could simply sign players at those slots, but sometimes you can enhance the quality by trading for someone on another team’s 53 man roster.
There are two types of trades that can happen. We often see draft pick trades where a team trades a late round pick for a player at a position of need. The Texans’ draft last season demonstrated that those late round selections are not nearly as valuable to every team. Only a handful of draftees actually made the team this go around. So, why not trade a sixth or seventh rounder for a good corner or linebacker?
However, there is another avenue you can take as well. Most people predicted the team would carry four running backs and six wide receivers. They have an extra player at each spot. So, it is possible that Dameon Pierce and Robert Woods could be dangled to a team that has depth issues at those spots. Could the Los Angeles Rams have a wide receiver or running back in exchange for Ernest Jones? They ended up dealing him to the Tennessee Titans, but those are the kinds of situations that the Texans can still take advantage of.
I haven’t been shy on my opinions of Pierce and still have to believe that they are quietly shopping him behind the scenes. I have no problem with Robert Woods as a football player, but wide receiver is the deepest position on this team. I’m not even sure how much he would play if he remains on the roster. He could be a really nice piece for a younger team that needs some veteran leadership. Getting a linebacker or corner that could upgrade this defense seems like an easy move to make here.
Third Quarterback
The decision to put Case Keenum on injured reserve is a wink-wink move that acknowledges what we see on the field when we watch. Whatever physical tools he once had are eroding. It happens to all of us. However, by putting him on injured reserve you are essentially paying him his full salary in exchange for being a second quarterbacks coach. If this season goes the way it should go then he is getting valuable on the job training.
Bobby Slowik is likely to be on the hottest head coaching prospects in the 2025 cycle and Jarrod Johnson looks like an offensive coordinator in the making. That leaves at least one open slot on the coaching staff. If Johnson could get promoted and Keenum takes over as quarterbacks coach then you have inserted about as much continuity as anyone could expect.
However, as much as we might plan for success, history shows that you will likely need a third quarterback at some point. I fully support moving on from Tim Boyle. The so-called “gunslinger” was the kind of gunslinger that you hide in the bathroom from when he comes into the saloon to hit the bad guy. The likelihood of you getting hit by a stray bullet is pretty high.
That being said, you haven’t added anyone to the practice squad yet at that position. I suppose there are always guys on the street, but I would think you’d want someone in house that knows the offense. Maybe that is something that happens between now and week one. We will have to see.
These aren’t your older brother’s Texans
My comrade in arms Kenneth predicted that five draft selections would not make the team. Let’s check in and see how he did in his bold prediction. For our purposes we will consider injured reserve as part of the roster. Below are the 2024 draftees and whether they actually made the team.
Kamari Lassiter— on team
Blake Fisher— on team
Calen Bullock— on team
Cade Stover— on team
Jamal Hill— on team
Jahwar Jordan— cut
Solomon Byrd— cut
Marcus Harris— cut
LaDarius Henderson— cut
The good news is that Harris and Byrd were added to the practice squad. However, Kenneth ended up being pretty damn close. The only whiff was on Jamal Hill and that likely had more to do with Christian Harris’ injury than Hill’s performance. Henderson was a very early cut, but otherwise these guys all performed reasonably well in camp.
Jordan in particular was a rough cut. He did some really good things in the preseason, but there just wasn’t space for him on the roster or the practice squad. Your older brother’s Texans would have rostered every draft pick and probably a few more undrafted ones just because they needed warm bodies. These aren’t your older brother’s Texans. They come with expectations now and those new draft picks have to bring it or they will be out on the street.