B
Houston Texans
Grand theft in the 243rd pick: the Texans steal Lambert-Smith and grade out a B.
by jaytex ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 6 picks
· 3 steals
· 2 reaches
The best pick of the weekend was also the simplest. The Texans watched KeAndre Lambert-Smith slide 54 picks past his grade and did not hesitate. Nothing here to lose sleep over; call it a B.
The cost of the Hancock reach is exactly the players who went right after him. The running back spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at. The roster is better shaped than it was, with wide receiver chief among the fixes.
In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the running back spot they never got to.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 25th pick they get a load in the middle. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Tate Ratledge in pick 58 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. It fills a real need, too.
They will replay Jayden Higgins at pick No. 89 for years; that is how good the value is. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They read the board right and Hollin Pierce was the payoff at the 127th overall pick. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They reached into another round for Jordan Hancock, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
You do not let a wide receiver like KeAndre Lambert-Smith reach No. 243 and blink. They did not. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.