If the 2021 NFL season ended right now, the Houston Texans would be in possession of the second overall pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, as the only team worse than they are this season are the Detroit Lions.
The Texans currently have an overall record of 2-9, as they have wins against the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Tennessee Titans. In their most recent game during Week 12, it was Houston losing to the New York Jets by a 21-14 score.
The loss by the Texans moved them up to the second overall spot in the draft with six games left in the season, and it moved the Jets to the third overall selection.
As for who can possibly be joining the Texans if they draft at No. 2 overall, Brad Weiss of FanSided.com, in the official FanSided Mock Draft, has Houston selecting Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral.
Currently the Texans quarterback is Tyrod Taylor, who is on an expiring contract, plus in the ’21 draft the Texans selected Davis Mills in the third round. Houston also has Deshaun Watson on the roster, but they will most likely trade him this offseason.
As for the mock draft, Weiss of FanSided.com wrote the following on how Corral fits in with the Texans:
"“Corral can come in and play right away, or spend a year behind Taylor learning the pro game if the Texans want to go that route.”"
Corral has led Ole Miss to a 10-2 overall record, as they are second place in the SEC West with only Alabama ahead of them in the standings.
Corral in 2021 is 259-of-379 for 2,334 yards with 20 touchdowns and four interceptions. Last season in ’20 Corral was 231-of-326 for 3,337 yards with 29 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. In his most recent game on Nov. 25 against Mississippi State, he was 26-of-34 for 234 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Should the Texans look elsewhere other than QB in 2022 NFL Draft?
The question for the 2022 NFL Draft is if the Texans in fact make a pick with the second overall selection, is drafting a quarterback the right choice? The Texans really need more on defense with their pass rush, because Houston’s sack leader Jonathan Greenard needs more help on the defensive side of the ball.
The Houston defense has a total of 25 sacks and has allowed nearly 1,500 yards rushing in 11 games this season, so there is a great need for defensive linemen to help not only add to the sack numbers, but to slow down the opponents’ rushing game too.
There are a number of ways the Texans can go with this draft, and picking a quarterback in the first round wouldn’t be such a bad thing, especially a quarterback who has shown improvement while playing in the SEC like Corral has.