C+
Houston Texans
The Texans land in the muddy middle: C+.
by jaytex ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 6 picks
· 3 steals
· 3 reaches
It is the swing that defines the weekend: Dont'e Thornton Jr. in the 89th pick, a good 85 spots before the room expected him. It lands right in the middle: a C+, no more, no less.
Whatever else happened, they won the night they took Winston Jr.. A whole weekend of picks and edge rusher is somehow still a want.
They went 5 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for. Building through the lines is a philosophy, and they stuck to it.
The verdict is a shrug for now, with the swing picks left to write the real ending.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 25th pick they get a building block for the line, even if it was a touch early.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Jordan Phillips in pick No. 58, miles early. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Dont'e Thornton Jr. in No. 89 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
The board fumbled Kevin Winston Jr. all the way to Round 4, Pick 26, and they scooped it up. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Raheim Sanders at slot 167 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Somehow Jamon Dumas-Johnson was still sitting there in the Round 7 slot, and they pounced on premier linebacker value. A need, and now a little less of one.