Can Jalen Pitre Replace Jordan Reid in the Texans Rebuilding Secondary?

The Houston Texans are in rebuild mode but can their draft picks make their mark on the franchise?

The Houston Texans former safety, Justin Reid, walked in free agency to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs. To counteract that move, the Texans decided to draft former Baylor safety, Jalen Pitre.

Jalen Pitre was a big part to the Baylor defense and it showed on film. He was constantly making plays and attacking the ball all game long. Never shying away from the tackle, despite being undersized, he showed the “alpha dog” mentality that coaches look for from their players. I feel that’s part of the reason why the Texans took a shot on him. But that’s not the only reason.

As I stated above, the Houston Texans lost safety, Justin Reid in free agency. Reid was a great cornerstone for the Texans secondary, but nobody wants to play for an organization that isn’t going to win. It makes the game brutal. Therefore, Reid walked.

Now, the Texans have Jalen Pitre back there who will be looking to make his mark in the league and show everybody he belongs. Now, I sound bias while writing this because as a amateur NFL draft scout, I watched him on film and loved his style of play. Seeing him in the Texans jersey will bring me nothing but joy. But can he replace Reid?

Jalen Pitre Player Breakdown

Jalen Pitre is one of my favorite draft picks in the entire 2022 NFL draft. I mean, what’s not to love about his game? He does it all. Pitre was a huge part of the Baylor defense that dominated the Big 12 this year and having him in the Texans uniform is awesome.

Strengths

Pitre is an incredibly athletic linebacker/safety hybrid. With great athleticism that corresponds to multiple different parts of his game, there isn’t a whole lot of question marks within his game. What you see is what you get.

Pitre plays the game with speed and tenacity. With Pitre’s athleticism being through the roof, and with him being in a position where speed is important, it’s not outrageous to think that his speed would be good regardless. However, that’s not what makes his game so special. The best part of his game is his instincts.

Pitre did a great job this past season with diagnosing plays, finding gaps, and making plays behind the line of scrimmage. I mean, having 18.5 tackles for loss this past season pretty much tells the entire story.

I don’t generally enjoy looking at statistics as a scout because they are oftentimes not a good deciding factor when scouting. But, just this once, we’re going to take a look at his stats.

Pitre this past season played in 14 games for Baylor. In those 14 games Pitre finished with 75 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles, 7 passes defended, and finally 18.5 tackles for loss.

Below I have some clips that show his ability to get in the backfield and make tackles. Just so you have a visual to show you the player we’d be able to get if we drafted him.

Weaknesses

I mentioned earlier in the article that Jalen Pitre doesn’t have the frame that reads “NFL starter”, now you get to read more about it.

Jalen Pitre, although a very talented player with a lot of upside in his game, is not exactly a very big safety. Therefore, his ability to finish on plays at the next level is going to be a bit scary for me because I’m not sure if he’ll be able to or not. But, you know who else wasn’t exactly a very big safety? Tyraan Mathieu. And he seemed to work out okay.

Pitre wasn’t exactly the biggest player in the draft, but that didn’t stop him from constantly making plays to help his team. However, playing at a Big 12 school is much different than playing at the NFL level. It’ll get a lot more physical, you’ll have a lot more guys fighting for yards, and it’s going to be his job to stop them.

Justin Reid vs Jalen Pitre

Justin Reid and Tyraan Matheiu were both cornerstones in the Texans secondary. Replacing either or them is unfair- but Jalen Pitre can pave his own path and make sure that he is remembered in Houston.

Justin Reid was a fearless player who didn’t do anything but give his all on the field. Rather he was playing in coverage, making a blitz play at the line, or laying his body out to make a hit- he did it all.

Thinking Pitre is going to be just as successful as Reid in that manner is unfair. But, Pitre has a lot to work with in terms of athleticism, quickness, and mentality. I really think that Pitre, can eventually become a very good player for the Texans.