Houston Texans draft prospect: Don’t forget about safety Bryan Cook

A safety the Houston Texans need to be looking at on draft weekend is Bryan Cook.

Adding to the defense will be key for the Houston Texans to have a successful rebuild, and a player we all need to remember the weekend of the 2022 NFL Draft is Cincinnati Bearcats safety Bryan Cook.

Cook was a member of the Bearcats team coached by Luke Fickell which qualified for the College Football Playoff so he’s faced some tough competition in his time at the collegiate level. In his draft profile via NFL.com it states Cook is an eventual “plus starter” according to their pre-draft grade of the safety at 6.37, which is on a scale of 8.0.

The 6’1″ Cook is coming off a senior season at Cincinnati which saw him play in 14 games, tallying 57 solo tackles (96 total), with five tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions and nine passes defensed.

In three seasons with the Bearcats, Cook had 78 solo tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions and 11 passes defensed. That said, it is safe to say Cook had his breakout season as a senior, and that improvement showed in his overall stats.

Now that he’s getting prepared for the NFL, exactly what are some draft profiles saying and writing about the Cincinnati safety?

Lance Zierlein of NFL.com wrote the following on Cook:

"“Skilled enforcer with the size, toughness and instincts to put his stamp on the game in a variety of ways. Cook plays with the confidence and consistency of a pro safety and loves to run and hit.”"

Joe Marino of The Draft Network gave Cook a third round valuation and wrote the following in a draft profile of the Cincinnati safety:

"“Cook could develop into a reliable starter, but 2021 was the first year of his career that he logged more than 220 snaps on the defensive side of the football and his feel for coverage is still a work in progress.”"

Houston Texans: Should Bryan Cook be a third round pick for the franchise?

The question is will Cook — who Marino also said can fit into any defensive scheme — become the player some believe he has the talents and ability to be? Will he be available for the Houston Texans to draft in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft?

Houston has the 37th overall pick (second round) which might be a reach for Cook, plus the 68th and 80th overall picks (third round) to go with their two first round choices. If Cook were still on the board in round three, adding to the defense isn’t such a bad idea with one of those two third round choices.

The current safeties on the depth chart for the Houston Texans are Eric Murray, Grayland Arnold, Terrance Brooks and Jonathan Owens. Though those players battle and play to the best of their abilities, the Texans need more added to that list of players, and Cook could quickly develop into a starter during this rebuild of the roster.

There is no way the Texans aren’t looking at what Cook could bring to the defense, and it could be a real possibility that Sauce Gardner of Cincinnati could be a cornerback the Texans draft in round one, then they could add his teammate Cook in the third round at safety. That duo played well in Cincinnati and the two players have the talent to transition over to the NFL, and the Texans need help at both safety and cornerback.

It is just a thought, but the Houston Texans would be getting a steal with one of their third round picks if they select Cook to play in the secondary for them in ’22, and that addition would make the Texans defense better for the upcoming season.