As a lead-up to the 2024 NFL draft, we've broken down the current depth chart of every NFL team and identified the biggest draft and team needs for the Houston Texans.
You can find additional team-by-team draft needs articles and other draft content on our 2024 NFL Draft Hub.
Who Did the Houston Texans Select in the 2024 NFL Draft?
The Houston Texans selected Kamari Lassiter (CB, Georiga) with the No. 42 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Texans also drafted:
- Blake Fisher (OT, Notre Dame)
- Calen Bullock (S, USC)
- Cade Stover (TE, Ohio State)
- Jamal Hill (LB, Oregon)
- Jawhar Jordan (RB, Louisville)
- Solomon Byrd (EDGE, USC)
- Marcus Harris (DT, Auburn)
- LaDarius Henderson (OT, Michigan)
Houston Texans Needs: Top Positions of Need in 2024
- Defensive Back
- Defensive Line
- Defensive Depth
What Picks Do the Houston Texans Have in 2024?
The Houston Texans have 9 picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, including:
- Round 2 (42)
- Round 2 (59)
- Round 3 (86)
- Round 4 (123)
- Round 4 (127)
- Round 6 (188)
- Round 6 (189)
- Round 7 (238)
- Round 7 (247)
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This preview shares insights into players, coaches, teams, and philosophies with one goal in mind: to prepare you for the 2024 NFL season by delivering the smartest information in the fastest, most direct way possible.
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Houston Texans Draft Capital Stats
Our Sharp Draft Value Rank is a valuation of draft capital based on a combination of average performance delivered and average dollars earned on second contracts.
This is based on two public models: performance delivered based on draft slot (the AV model created by Chase Stuart) and contractual earnings in non-rookie deals based upon draft slot (the OTC model created by Brad Spielberger and Jason Fitzgerald).
- Texans Sharp Draft Value Rank: 25 of 32 teams
- Texans AV Model Draft Value Rank: 26 of 32 teams
- Texans OTC Model Draft Value Rank: 24 of 32 teams
Houston Texans Draft Value vs. Other Teams:
The Texans’ draft value is 14% lower than the league average of all 32 teams. 24 other teams have more draft value entering the 2024 NFL Draft.
Houston Texans Draft Prediction:
Mock draft expert Ryan McCrystal believes the Texans could target a linebacker like Edgerrin Cooper (LB, Texas A&M) with their top pick at No. 42 overall in the second round.
Houston Texans Strength of Schedule, 2024
The Houston Texans have the 7th-hardest NFL strength of schedule for the 2024 NFL season.
Houston Texans Offense: Depth Chart, Analysis & Draft Needs
Rich Hribar breaks down the offensive depth chart by position for the Houston Texans, identifying areas where the team could improve in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft.
Quarterback Depth Chart, Texans:
- C.J. Stroud
- Davis Mills
- Case Keenum
- Tim Boyle
Houston hit the jackpot last spring by landing C.J. Stroud at No. 2 overall.
Not only did Stroud have a great season in the context of rookie quarterbacks, but he had a great season in the context of all quarterbacks in the league in 2023.
Stroud threw for 8.2 yards per pass attempt (third in the NFL) with a league-best 4.6 TD-to-INT ratio.
He finished sixth in the league in EPA per dropback (0.11) and ninth in success rate (45.5%).
Layering in all the injuries that Houston dealt with on their offensive line and at wide receiver, the 2023 season for Stroud was nothing short of a major win for the organization.
We have seen the organization embrace that this offseason, aggressively looking to add talent to the roster and make a larger push while Stroud is on his rookie contract.
Running Back Depth Chart, Texans:
- Joe Mixon
- Dameon Pierce
- J.J. Taylor
- Gerrid Doaks
- Andrew Beck (FB)
- Troy Hairston (FB)
The Houston run game had some moments of success, but overall this was a primary area of weakness for the offense.
Houston running backs closed the 2023 season ranking:
- 26th in yards per carry (3.7 YPC)
- 26th in EPA per rush (-0.14)
- 29th in success rate (31.7%)
- 18th in the rate of runs to gain 10 or more yards (9.2%)
- 27th in the rate of runs that failed to gain yardage (20.1%)
- 31st in the rate of runs to result in a first down or touchdown (16.1%)
- 24th in yards before contact per rush (1.06)
- 29th in yards after contact per rush (2.57)
The injuries to the offensive line did not aid the cause, but Houston made it a focal point to upgrade the position since Bobby Slowik stems from a coaching tree that values running the football effectively.
After failing to land Saquon Barkley, Houston pivoted by trading for Joe Mixon and then giving him a three-year contract.
Mixon has left meat on the bone for his career as a runner, but he is a reliable workhorse back.
Turning 28 this summer, Mixon has posted over 1,200 total yards in five of the past six seasons.
Mixon has 37 total touchdowns over the past three years.
Last season with Cincinnati, Mixon led all running backs with 80.8% of his backfield rushes while accounting for a league-high 78.8% of the backfield touches overall.
While Mixon has accumulated counting stats playing in good offenses (something he has in place again here), his peripheral metrics have not been as strong.
Even last season, his underlying metrics look similar to what Houston got out of Devin Singletary.
2023 Joe Mixon vs Devin Singletary:
| 2023 | YPC | EPA/Rush | Success% | Explosive% | Stuff% | YAC/Att |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mixon | 4.0 | -0.06 | 36.6% | 10.5% | 16.0% | 2.51 |
| Singletary | 4.2 | -0.07 | 35.6% | 10.6% | 16.2% | 2.85 |
Mixon also had those stats running into light boxes on 35.4% of his carries while Singletary only ran into light fronts on 26.4% of his runs.
That last component is an intriguing element of this transition for Mixon.
He has been a back that has steadily run out of shotgun against light boxes under Zac Taylor.
Since he entered the NFL, 30.2% of Mixon's runs have come against light boxes.
James Conner is the only running back with a higher rate over that span who has as many rushes as Mixon.
Houston will certainly run 11 personnel at a higher rate this season based on the quality of the wide receiver room, but Mixon will have more runs with a fullback on the field than ever before.
Mixon has just 20 career runs with another back on the field.
Houston was fifth in the NFL last season in runs with a fullback on the field (198).
Under Slowik, Houston was fourth in the NFL in run rate from 21 personnel (28.7%).
We should expect more 3WR sets from Houston this season, but Slowik is not going to scrap the fullback from the run game.
Behind Mixon, Dameon Pierce completely flatlined last season.
He was so bad in his second season that the team aggressively moved on from him in season and turned to Singeltary full-time.
Pierce struggled with the scheme change, finishing last among all backs with 100 or more rushes in yards per carry (2.9) and success rate (23.4%).
Pierce is the only other back outside of Mixon on this roster signed beyond 2024, which includes both fullbacks.
Wide Receiver Depth Chart, Texans:
- Stefon Diggs
- Nico Collins
- Tank Dell
- Robert Woods
- Noah Brown
- John Metchie
- Xavier Hutchinson
- Steven Sims
- Johnny Johnson
- Jared Wayne
You can make a strong case that Houston has the best wide receiver room now in the NFL.
Not only in terms of potential WR1-WR3 but having guys like Robert Woods and Noah Brown as your WR4 and WR5 is a spot most of the league would like to be in.
Of course, it all starts at the top with Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell.
Collins made a major jump in year three, catching 80 passes for 1,297 yards and eight touchdowns over 15 games in the regular season.
Collins was second in the league behind Tyreek Hill in yards per route run last season (3.11).
The quality of targets was the largest difference.
After 25.8% of his targets were inaccurate in 2022, that off-target rate dropped to 13.8% last season.
The breakout season for Collins came at the right time, as he enters the final season of his rookie contract this season.
Dell was third among all rookie wide receivers in yards per route run (2.22), trailing only Puka Nacua (2.60) and Rashee Rice (2.41).
He ranked fifth among all rookie wideouts in target rate per route run (23.5%) and fourth in the rate of targets to result in a first down or touchdown (45.3%).
Both Dell and Collins had bumps during moments when the other player missed time, but on 210 passing plays with both players on the field at the same time, Collins averaged 2.88 yards per route run and Dell averaged 2.26 yards per route.
When both players were on the field, they combined for 49.7% of the team targets. The next closest player on the team had 15.8% of the targets.
That is surely going to change with the arrival of Diggs.
Diggs started 2023 on fire.
He went over 100 yards in five of his first six games of the season.
Then the bottom fell out, and he never had another 100-yard game.
Over the final 13 games of the season, he had fewer receiving yards than Khalil Shakir, who had 59 fewer targets over that span than Diggs.
We expect a player as good as Diggs to produce at a higher level than he did to close the season.
Bar none, he is the first finger to point in his decline.
But there were several other contributing factors such as an offensive coordinator change, a reduction in his depth of the target, and the Bills facing a rogue’s gallery of defenses that were good against the pass last season.
Over that same span, Josh Allen was 15th in completion rate, 18th in yards per pass attempt, and 13th in accuracy rating.
Regardless of how his 2023 season ended, Diggs still commanded a high rate of targets.
He was targeted on 27.0% of his routes, which was 12th among wide receivers.
It will be interesting to see how the targets shake out here, but the addition of Diggs gives Houston the best WR1-WR3 punch in the league.
Despite being flush with options in 2024, Houston only has Dell signed beyond this season out of the core receivers.
The only other wideouts who are signed past 2024 are John Metchie and Xavier Hutchinson.
It is doubtful that Houston aggressively chase a wide receiver in this draft, but the overall strength of this depth chart is going to be hard to keep together beyond 2024.
Pre Order the Best Analytical 2024 Football Preview
Don't miss out on Warren Sharp's 500+ page preview of the 2024 NFL season.
The preview is unlike anything you have ever seen, featuring stunning visualizations built with the reader in mind.
This preview shares insights into players, coaches, teams, and philosophies with one goal in mind: to prepare you for the 2024 NFL season by delivering the smartest information in the fastest, most direct way possible.