Houston Texans Draft Grade: Isaiah Coulter brings great value in 5th round

The Houston Texans draft saw them draft a wide receiver in the fifth round, as that eventually ended up being their final pick of the 2020 NFL Draft.

When the Houston Texans draft selected Rhode Island wide receiver Isaiah Coulter in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft it ended up being their final pick of the day and the three-day event, as they had no picks in the sixth round, and the seventh round saw the Texans trade all three picks they had.

Player Profile: As for Coulter being the 26th players selected in the fifth round of the draft, the 6’2” 198-pound wide receiver possesses really fast speed as he was timed with a 4.45 40-yard dash, a 36-inch vertical jump and for fun he’ll now challenge the likes of DeAndre Carter and Keke Coutee for a roster spot.

The word used on more than one occasion by Lance Zierlein of NFL.com in his draft preview profile of Coulter was “upside.” In fact, Zierlein used the word “upside “twice in the final sentence of his overview, and that is probably how general manager/head coach Bill O’Brien sees the Rhode Island wide receiver too, with the potential to have great upside.

The Texans need to make sure they are set at wide receiver because of some injury history to a couple of the top receivers on the roster like Will Fuller with varying injury issues, and Brandin Cooks with some concussion questions draft preview on CBS Sports:

"“Raw but talented X receiver with NFL-caliber length, speed and athletic ability. He runs a limited route tree and doesn’t show enough attention to detail in his route work …”"

Yes, that is a negative look at Coulter, but it is something that can be fixed with the proper coaching, so right now this isn’t worrisome. With most rookies, this offseason will be the time to break bad habits and learn how the coaches on the Texans want things done.

Player Stats: In three seasons at Rhode Island, Isaiah Coulter played in 34 games for the Rams where he totaled 132 receptions for 1,855 yards with 12 career touchdowns, all while averaging 14.1 yards per reception.

Coulter in ’19 had 72 receptions (a career-high) for 1,039 yards with eight touchdowns, which his starts also equaled 14.4 yards per reception. In fact, the past two seasons, the 171st overall pick averaged 14.4 yards per reception in both seasons, as in ’18 as a sophomore Coulter had 42 receptions for 604 yards with three touchdowns.

Pick Opinion: The positive thing about this Texans draft pick is the expectations aren’t through the roof early on, but the fact that there is some untapped potential that could jump out at the NFL level with some hard work on technical issues for a wide receiver, there is some faint reason for excitement. Maybe Coulter can even play some special teams too, because with his speed it wouldn’t hurt to try, plus it is a way to make a reason to stay on the roster.

Draft Pick Grade: B-

Final Thoughts: The opinion here for this Texans draft selection is the size and speed of Coulter is very exciting, as now the rookie is tallest wide receiver on the depth chart. The negative is the technical issues are worrisome, but they are fixable, and if it comes down to being fixed or not fixed, that is up to the player.

For the Texans to select a wide receiver in the fifth round, and one that just has to put in work to improve, and not expect to take over the starting role this season, this is a solid selection.