A year ago, the Houston Texans were a franchise mired in uncertainty, with a first-year head coach in DeMeco Ryans and an unproven rookie quarterback in C.J. Stroud.
Fast forward to the present, and the Texans might be the Kansas City Chiefs’ biggest threat in the AFC. Ryans is coming off an inaugural season that saw him win the AFC South title and a playoff game, and Stroud boasts a claim to the 2023 Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
On offense, Stroud will enjoy an abundance of weapons at his disposal in 2024 — among them Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs, Tank Dell, Joe Mixon, and Dalton Schultz. And on defense, Ryans’ trademark unit should only get better.
The new-age Texans have arrived, and they’re one of the most exciting teams in the NFL. But what can they do in the 2025 NFL Draft to sustain their championship window?
Who Could the Houston Texans Draft in 2025?
1.28) Houston Texans: Denzel Burke, CB, Ohio State
Derek Stingley Jr. and Jalen Pitre are verified studs, and Kamari Lassiter has promise as the Texans’ nickel cornerback. The secondary is starting to come together, but another long-term boundary presence could help the unit take the next step. Enter Denzel Burke.
Burke first broke out as a true freshman at Ohio State, and for the better part of four years, he’s been a premier playmaker on defense. A former WR, he has natural ball skills, and he’s also an explosive two-phase competitor with impressive technical proficiency.
The Texans’ defense is strong overall, but Jeff Okudah might be more of a stopgap than a long-term solution on the boundary opposite Stingley. Getting younger and healthier could be key down the road, and Burke — a fellow Ohio State alum — would help with that.
2.60) Houston Texans: Jamaree Caldwell, DT, Oregon
Jamaree Caldwell is an incredibly unique player. He has the compact mass and density of a nose tackle at 6’1″, 325 pounds, but he has the pass-rushing juice of an alignment-versatile force, as he showed in 2023 by logging 6.5 sacks and 8.5 TFLs.
KEEP READING: Ian Cummings’ Full 7-Round NFL Mock Draft
The Texans have a venerable defensive line with Will Anderson Jr., Danielle Hunter, Denico Autry, and Foley Fatukasi, but the interior depth still has room to improve. Caldwell offers two-sided appeal as a natural disruptor whose size and leverage makes him nose-capable.
3.92) Houston Texans: Anthony Belton, OL, NC State
At 6’6″, 336 pounds, with good size-adjusted athleticism and a mean streak in space, Anthony Belton gives the Texans depth at tackle as well as potential utility at guard.
Though the Texans added Blake Fisher in the 2024 NFL Draft, they could use a little more tackle depth. Belton also projects well to guard, which could prove useful if Kenyon Green can’t rebound. Green had a poor rookie season, and then missed all of 2023 with an injury.
Rounds 4-7
4.125) Houston Texans
Barion Brown, WR, Kentucky
5.157) Houston Texans
Jahdae Barron, DB, Texas
7.221) Houston Texans
Daylan Dotson, EDGE, UCF