One of the roster improvements that the Houston Texans have been allegedly looking into as of late has been a veteran wide receiver. This comes after the one-year experiment of Christian Kirk this past season, and the one-year production of Stefon Diggs in 2024.
Most recently, the team had been tied to former Tampa Bay Buccaneers legend Mike Evans, but he ended up signing with the San Francisco 49ers.
If they truly are looking for a veteran option to join names like Nico Collins, Jayden Higgins and a returning Tank Dell, then there are three available names that could be of interest to the franchise. That would be Keenan Allen, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Marquise “Hollywood” Brown.
Keenan Allen
- Status: UFA
- Age: 33 years old
- Most recent team: Los Angeles Chargers
- Projected cost: $6.8 million
The Texans and wide receiver Keenan Allen have been tied together for the last couple of seasons at least. As recently as the 2024 offseason, the Texans actually swung and missed on acquiring him from the Chargers in a trade (he went to the Chicago Bears instead). That season, he went on to accumulate 70 receptions (lowest since 2022), 744 yards receiving (lowest since 2022), a 10.6 yard average (lowest since 2021) and seven touchdowns (T-second-highest total of career).
Being back with the Chargers this past season, he had 81 receptions (+11), 777 receiving yards (+33), a 9.6 yard average (1.0 yard less, lowest of career) and only four touchdowns (-3, T-lowest of career). His output from 2025 would’ve placed him in the top three (at worst) of most significant statistical categories for Houston’s receiving core. Which means, even at 33 years old, Allen could be a more-than-serviceable option in the passing attack. Additionally, Spotrac projects him to only cost around $6.8 million in salary.
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine
- Status: UFA
- Age: 28 years old
- Most recent team: Miami Dolphins
- Projected cost: $3.1 million
Former Dolphins wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine knows the Texans all too well, as he spent the first five years of his career in the AFC South as a Tennessee Titan. His best season as a professional came in 2024, as the deep-threat racked up 32 receptions (second-highest of career), 497 receiving yards (career-high), a 15.5 yard average (second-highest of career) and nine touchdowns (highest of career). Keep in mind, this is with being somewhat of a third option behind Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd at the time.
He then joined the Miami Dolphins this past season, and his production took a nose dive as a result. He had only 11 receptions, 89 receiving yards, an 8.1 yard average and zero touchdowns. These marks are all the second-lowest of his career (since 2020, rookie season). The quarterback performance controversy with former starter Tua Tagovailoa certainly didn’t help, as Miami’s offense fell from 18th in 2024 to 26th in 2025. Thus, Westbrook-Ikhine’s numbers shouldn’t be focused on in a vacuum.
The best comp for him in Houston could be Xavier Hutchinson, as both pass-catchers can be great improv partners with quarterback C.J. Stroud, and can also be relied upon as outlets when options like Nico Collins and Jayden Higgins are more tightly covered. His addition then would add another vertical element for the Texans to exploit opposing defenses with. Even better, Spotrac has him valued at roughly $3.1 million.
Marquise “Hollywood” Brown
- Status: UFA
- Age: 28 years old
- Most recent team: Kansas City Chiefs
- Projected cost: $5.5 million
Former Baltimore Ravens and Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marquise Brown is still a free agent after six days of official free agency business, and the Texans could benefit from his availability. The former first-round Oklahoma Sooner has played six NFL seasons (missed 2024 with a major shoulder injury), with his best overall being his 2021 performance of 91 receptions, 1,008 yards, a 11.1 yard average and six touchdowns for Baltimore.
He was then traded to the Cardinals ahead of 2022 (played two seasons), and then ultimately landed with the Kansas Chiefs in 2024. In his lone healthy campaign as a Chief, he put up 49 catches (lowest since rookie year, second-lowest of career), 587 receiving yards, a 12.0 yard average (third-highest of career) and five touchdowns.
Like Allen, the speedy receiver would’ve finished as a top-three pass-catching option in Houston this past season, which would bode well for a feature in 2026 if they went that route. An addition of a twitchy deep-threat like Brown would immediately give the team one of its most dynamic units since Stroud’s debut in 2023, and with a projected value of only $5.5 million at the moment, it could be worth looking into (especially since there’s interest from multiple teams for his services).