The Houston Texans Have Rebuilt the Tight End Position

The Houston Texans have brought in four tight ends to the roster in the last two offseasons.

The tight end position has undergone a drastic change under Houston Texans new general manager, Brian Gaine. Under the previous general manager Rick Smith, the Texans had C.J. Fiedorowicz, Ryan Griffin, and Stephen Anderson as the three tight ends utilized in the offense. Griffin was the longest tenured tight end drafted in the sixth round in 2013, Fiedorowicz was hand picked by head coach Bill O’Brien in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft.

Both players were in their second contracts when Gaine took over the responsibilities in the front office in 2018. Fiedorowicz retired due to his serious history of concussions while Griffin was recently waived during this offseason. Anderson was signed as an undrafted free agent from Cal in 2016 but was waived ahead of the start of the Texans regular season in 2018.

Since O’Brien was hired as the head coach, there were expectations of him utilizing the two tight end set that he ran successfully with the New England Patriots while he was the offensive coordinator, but the Texans had yet to find the correct personnel.

Gaine addressed the group of the tight end’s he inherited entering the 2018 season by drafting Jordan Akins in the third round from the University of Central Florida and Jordan Thomas in the sixth round from Mississippi State. They combined for 37 receptions, 440 receiving yards, and four touchdown receptions in their first season.

They also signed Darren Fells to a one year deal after being waived by the Cleveland Browns and drafted Kahale Warring from San Diego State in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Texans will be entering 2019 with a group of tight ends handpicked by Gaine, and go along with how he envisions them to fit within the parameters of the offense.