Houston Texans 2020 NFL Draft: Is Zack Moss the answer at running back?
The Houston Texans are in need of adding to the running back roster, and a player who could be selected in the 2020 NFL Draft by the franchise is Zack Moss.
Two of the biggest needs for the Houston Texans this offseason is to add to the pass rush and two added players to the running back roster who can provide long-term production and answers.
At running back for the Texans, there are both Lamar Miller (who was injured all of last season) and Carlos Hyde, whom are free agents this offseason. Now as for the NFL draft, the player who could really help this franchise played for the Utah Utes, and his name is Zack Moss.
Moss played in 13 games this past season for Utah, where he had 235 attempts for 1,416 yards rushing and 15 touchdowns, all the while averaging 6.0 yards per carry.
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In four seasons at Utah, Moss played in 45 games (13 games in a season twice), where he collected a grand total of 4,067 yards on 712 carries. Within those carries, 38 went for touchdowns. Looking at his final three collegiate seasons, Moss has rushing totals of 1,173 and 10 touchdowns on 214 carries as a sophomore.
During his junior season, Moss played in nine games, where he had 179 rushes for 1,096 yards and 11 touchdowns, then of course there is his aforementioned senior season.
Also his senior season, Moss made 28 receptions for 388 yards and two scores, as his final career receiving numbers were 66 receptions for 685 yards and three touchdowns.
Like stated in previous articles, Texans general manager/head coach Bill O’Brien has some tough and important decisions ahead of him this offseason, because not having a first-round pick is one thing, but making the correct choice is another thing altogether.
Most likely the Texans — if they stay put where they are and make their first selection in the second round — will either take a running back or edge player, right? Those are big needs, and the Texans need to add to the secondary as well, so drafting a cornerback just might be the second-round option the Texans make.
This past season, the Texans were a Top 10 rushing team in the NFL (with a lot of help from quarterback Deshaun Watson) by averaging 125.6 yards per game as a team, averaging 4.6 yards per carry as a team on 434 carries.
The Texans also averaged 2,009 yards as a team in ’19, but next year will most likely be different because Hyde is a free agent and after having 2,070 yards, he could get a nice payday this offseason.
Who knows if the Texans will pay Hyde this offseason, so if he leaves that still means Duke Johnson is on the roster, but the Texans will need more than Johnson to stay atop the AFC South mountain.
Moss, who is 5-10, 222 pounds, didn’t play in the Senior Bowl but will be a part of the NFL Combine later this month. He was described as a “patient runner” by Dan Schmelzer of NFLMocks.com, a FanSided website. The draft profile also stated the following about the running back:
"“Moss is also extremely quick in short spaces, cutting through traffic well in the middle of the field and even showing solid elusiveness in the open field. However, it is Moss’ power that stands out as his best trait.”"
If the Texans can get a power back to play along with Johnson and Watson on the offense, Moss could be the running back the Texans need when it is their turn to make a pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Again, Schmelzer of NFLMocks.com went on to praise the pass protection ability of Moss, and that too is something to watch for when it comes to the Texans making a selection in this draft at running back, because if we know anything about this team, it is pass protection needs to keep improving.
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Again, it will be interesting to see where the Texans decide to go with their first couple picks in the ’20 NFL draft, but Moss is a name to remember not only in late April, but for when the NFL Combine takes place later this month as well.