Texans WR John Metchie III will be a difference maker in 2022

The newest Houston Texans wide receiver John Metchie III will be a difference maker in 2022.

One Houston Texans rookie all of us should be excited for — and most likely are — is wide receiver John Metchie III, and that’s because of one word: potential.

The Texans gained a great player when they selected Metchie in the third round, and now they have to be patient in his full recovery from his knee injury suffered late in the 2021 season at Alabama.

Drafting Metchie was a perfect selection at 44th overall by general manager Nick Caserio when it came to the ’22 NFL Draft because the Texans are in a rebuild, and they can show the proper patience with the rookie wide receiver because of not only his injury, but because he’s going to have to adapt to playing in the NFL.

If he returns to the field at 100 percent and is the player he was at Alabama, well, he’ll be a darn good player for the Texans, and to be honest, he won’t have to be the best wide receiver on the roster as the team also has Brandin Cooks and Nico Collins.

What is exciting about Metchie is his potential and his ability to be a difference maker for Houston. He’ll be wearing the No. 88 jersey for the Texans, and as famous as that number is in Texas, it is time for Metchie to make that number his own in Houston.

Texans: Metchie has had a successful recovery process this offseason

Metchie is said to be recovering at a very good pace, better than expected, and if that is the case, he could (and hopefully) will be available for Week 1 against AFC South rival, the Indianapolis Colts.

There is no doubt the Texans need Metchie in the season opener against the Colts, and they are going to need him at full force for the entire ’22 season. He’ll have his opportunity to show the rest of the NFL what they passed on, and if he makes teams pay for their mistake of not selecting him before the 44th pick, that will be good for Texans quarterback Davis Mills and the rest of the offense.

What makes Metchie so valuable is he allows Cooks to play on the outside, and Metchie can become the slot receiver for the Texans. That was a big need before the draft because the offense needed some consistency at that wide receiver position.

Having Metchie in the slot, plus Collins and Cooks on the outside, honestly is not a bad trio if Collins and Metchie can live up to just above-average expectations in ’22, and they will make Mills a much better quarterback in year two with the franchise.

The best thing about the rookie Metchie is he played high-level collegiate football at Alabama, so he’s played in some high-pressure situations in the past few seasons.

Metchie is going under the radar right now in preseason rookie predictions, but he’s going to surprise many with his abilities after recovering from his injury, and hopefully the difference maker in the slot will be on the field sooner rather than later.

The difference he’s going to make playing in the slot is going to be big for the Houston offense, and hopefully that becomes a big part of this franchise regaining more success in the win column  this season.