Houston Texans Roundup: NFL Combine numbers and prospects

There is one day left for workouts at the 2019 NFL Combine and for the Houston Texans that means another day of players to keep an eye on.

Sunday saw defensive linemen and linebackers have their workouts at the 2019 NFL Combine. Most likely, one or more of those players will end up on the roster of the Houston Texans during or following the 2019 NFL Draft in late April.

That brings us to the Texans and which players from Sunday’s group will or at least should be targeted by the franchise. In terms of when the Texans should draft a defensive linemen or linebacker, the guess would be an edge rusher is the way the Texans would go if they were to use one of their early picks on either Day 1 or Day 2 of the NFL Draft.

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The Texans not only have the 23rd overall selection in the first round, but the they also have the 54th and 55th overall draft picks (both in Round 2) and the 87th overall pick (Round 3). Those are sports where they could target need positions such as offensive tackle, cornerback, safety or even an interior offensive lineman.

Houston could also select a tight end early on or even an edge rusher, or possibly if they really want to make a surprise take a running back in the third round or another wide receiver as injuries really hampered that position last season.

Just viewing some 40-yard dash times for edge rushers from Sunday’s workouts, Montez Sweat of Mississippi State was the fastest at 4.41 and the next quickest edge rushers were Justin Hollins of Oregon at 4.50 and Brian Burns of Florida State at 4.53.

Porter Gustin of USC had the most bench press reps at 31 for a player listed as an edge rusher, with the next edge rusher in bench press being Josh Allen of Kentucky at 28 reps. Gustin is listed by NFL.com as a player who could be an NFL backup or have special teams potential, while Allen is a player who is being projected as a first round player and a player who has “Pro Bowl potential” in his future. Allen is most likely a player the Texans will not be drafting as he should be selected in the Top 10 of the draft.

There is a lot to look forward to with the combine times, stats and numbers. Though those numbers aren’t the only part of the draft process this is important, they still make for interesting conservation and show some of the athletic ability the players possess.

More Texans headlines include:

• John Harris of HoustonTexans.com listed observations from the NFL Combine, including this about an offensive tackle:

"“Washington offensive tackle Kaleb McGary is cut from a different cloth. As I watched him on the field, I immediately flashed back to last year and how much he reminded me of Colts star rookie right tackle Braden Smith.”"

Remember, Smith was a guard in college, but is now a tackle with the Colts and all has went well for him. With the Colts Smith, started the final 12 games of the regular season and the playoffs at right tackle. This could be a route the Texans could take too, as NFL.com has McGary listed as a player who could become a starter in his NFL career.

• Mark Lane of TexansWire.com wrote about Byron Murphy and how they need to meet with the Washington cornerback:

"“Houston needs help at cornerback, especially with the club prepped to shop former 2015 first-rounder Kevin Johnson.”"

The article states Murphy said he was the best cornerback in the 2019 NFL Draft. Various mock drafts have Murphy as a first round pick, being selected in the range where the Texans are slated to draft in the first round. If the Texans do show interest in the cornerback, who knows, maybe Murphy will be the first round choice of the team.

• Tweet of the Day

Any update that says Texans wide receiver Will Fuller is doing well is great news and that is something to be hopeful for after he suffered his ACL tear against the Jacksonville Jaguars this past season. Fuller finished the 2019 season playing in seven games where he totaled 32 receptions (45 targets) for 503 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 15.7 yards per reception.

Having Fuller back next season is of great importance for the team, and when Fuller is fully healthy the offense of the Texans could become really dangerous if they make the necessary improvements on the offensive line.