Houston Texans add Vernon Hargreaves for secondary depth

Depending on who is asked, the Houston Texans have improved their secondary on a Wednesday afternoon.

Injures have hampered the Houston Texans’ secondary this season, but on Wednesday they added a former first-round pick that has yet to reach his potential in Vernon Hargreaves, off waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to a report by ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Schefter said the following about the former cornerback of the Buccaneers in joining the Texans:

Also in a report by Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, he tweeted the Texans made the claim official:

In another tweet by Trevor Sikkema of The Draft Network, he quoted Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians about releasing Hargreaves, with the following statement below:

The feeling seems to be that Hargreaves could be a treasure for the Texans as they are working hard to make their secondary better than it is. This season, though, Hargreaves was benched by the Buccaneers as Jenna Laine of ESPN.com reported it was because “of lack of hustle,” in a recent article quoting Arians.

Just three years ago at the 2016 NFL Draft, Hargreaves was the 11th overall selection, but that coaching staff is no longer in Tampa Bay, and changes were made by their current coaches, whose plans didn’t include Hargreaves.

Joining the Texans could be a welcome change for Hargreaves, because the secondary of the Texans needs depth, and they need improved play. This season Hargreaves has 36 tackles, one interception, one fumble recovery, one touchdown and four passes defensed in 2019. His interception was in the season opener against the San Francisco 49ers, and this past Sunday in his final game with the Buccaneers, Hargreaves totaled two tackles and and one pass defensed.

When Hargreaves was coming out of Florida and into the NFL Draft back in 2016, in a Sports Illustrated draft profile it said the following about the strengths he brought to the field:

"“Freakishly agile player who crouches low in his stance to reduce unnecessary motion and springs into coverage in a flash. Exceptional stride length and quickness, turning quickly to zero in on the catch.”"

Not including Hargreaves, the cornerback depth chart currently consists of: Johnathan Joseph, Lonnie Johnson Jr., Keion Crossen, Bradley Roby, Gareon Conley, Cornell Armstrong, Xavier Crawford and Phillip Gaines (who is on the injured reserve).

The Texans are still battling a cornerback injury with Roby, as listed below on a tweet by the Houston Texans PR department:

Claiming Hargreaves isn’t the best move or the worst move made by the Texans, but it is a move that doesn’t hamper this team or roster. The Texans need all the depth they can add within the secondary with the way injuries have affected them this season.

This is also a second chance for Hargreaves for this season to show he’s still a solid NFL player, and with this claim by the Texans, Hargreaves will now face his former team as the Texans will face Tampa Bay in Week 16.