D
Houston Texans
The Texans won the night they stopped Smith from sliding. Grade: D.
by Drane04 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 13 picks
· 9 steals
· 3 reaches
You could see the war room lean forward. Brashard Smith at the 239th overall pick is the sort of fall that does not happen, except it just did. A D that will need time and luck to look better.
Reaching for Brown left real value on the table behind him. Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere.
The quarterback hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The Texans clearly valued win-now help, adding bodies who have done it before.
It is a steep hill from here, and the grade knows it.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 19 they get a problem off the edge, and a steal at that. The biggest hole, addressed.
Emeka Egbuka in slot 25 is exactly on the number, no argument either way. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
They robbed the room for Omarion Hampton here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Nice patience on Tyler Warren, who had no business lasting to the 60th pick. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Derrick Harmon in pick No. 61 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Jalon Walker at the 63rd overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It fills a real need, too.
Xavier Watts in the Round 3 slot is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Hollin Pierce at pick 88 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
The board fumbled Deone Walker all the way to pick No. 89, and they scooped it up. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They reached into another round for Tommi Hill, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
They will replay Jake Majors at slot 122 for years; that is how good the value is. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Samuel Brown in pick 164 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Brashard Smith at No. 239 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.