B-
Houston Texans
The Texans turned the phones into found money: B-.
by jaytex ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 4 steals
· 2 reaches
The real work happened on the phones. The Texans fleeced their trade partners, turning their picks into a noticeably bigger pile than they started with.
That is a cornerback worth more than the slot they spent on him, plainly. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through wide receiver. The cost of the Iheanachor reach is exactly the players who went right after him.
Good work on the whole, with wide receiver the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 18th overall pick they get a coverage-and-run second-level piece, and a steal at that. A clean fit for the roster.
In No. 28 they get a cornerstone up front, though the board says they badly overpaid.
Emmanuel Pregnon in pick No. 38 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
A tidy little value on Caleb Banks in the Round 2 slot, a step better than break-even. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A tidy bit of business in Round 2, Pick 27, where Lee Hunter graded well above the range. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
No edge and no loss on Mike Washington Jr. in pick 69; it is a wash and a sensible one. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Beau Stephens. A need, and now a little less of one.
Charles Demmings is a better player than the 167th pick suggests; smart patience, rewarded. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Demond Claiborne at Round 5, Pick 29 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Thaddeus Dixon slipping to the Round 7 slot is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.