Fans and NFL commentators alike are touting the Texans after they signed both Johnathan Joseph and Danieal Manning during the offseason. It appears that NFL players are taking notice too as New England Patriots DE Ty Warren has said that he would be glad to join the Texans. According to CBSSports.com, Warren would take the veteran’s minimum in order to join Houston this season.
Adding a veteran DE to the depth chart would be an intelligent and valuable move for the Texans. Currently,
Antonio Smith and J.J. Watt will be the starting defensive ends for the Texans. While Antonio was consistent last season his aggressive playing often caught him offsides, costing the Texans valuable yards. Likewise, J.J. Watt will be a rookie and will be unproven in the NFL.
While the Texans are still working to find a way to keep Vonta Leach in the lineup, adding Warren would be both affordable and wise. Behind Watt and Smith, on the roster, are Jesse Nading and Tim Jamison, both of whom have little on-field experience outside of the preseason. This means that any injury or illness to Watt or Smith would immediately impact the defensive line for the Texans.
Warren is entering his seventh season in the NFL and would bring an accumulated 20.5 sacks, 9 PDefs, and 4 forced fumbles to the Texans.
For a team that is looking to make a run deep into the playoffs, for the first time in team history, this move seems to make too much sense. The Texans have already made a big splash in free agency, we shall see if they will open up the checkbook once more to help the team.