Do the Houston Texans have any compensatory picks coming in 2025?

The Houston Texans have lost several key free agents this offseason, namely Blake Cashman and Jonathan Greenard. The Texans have made moves to replace them, but that doesn't mean they'll see the same success with the new players. We hope they will, but you can't just assume in sports. Those two players played well enough for the Minnesota Vikings to sign both to bolster their defense.

Usually, when guys get signed by other teams, the NFL will sometimes reward what are called compensatory picks to the team for the following NFL offseason. So for instance, the Baltimore Ravens lost seven compensatory free agents and signed one, which means they're being given four compensatory picks.

As the NFL's official website explains it;

"Under the rules for compensatory draft selections, a team losing more or better compensatory free agents (“CFA”) than it acquires in the previous year is eligible to receive compensatory draft picks.
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The picks fall between the third and seventh rounds depending on the talent lost. The Minnesota Vikings got a third-round pick for losing Kirk Cousins, while the Cleveland Browns got a seventh-round pick for Harrison Bryant.

How does the NFL determine this? Well, through a complicated formula that we don't completely understand. It should be stated that just because your team loses a free agent, doesn't mean they get to get a draft pick in return. They have to have a major impact on the team for this to happen.

There is not an unlimited amount of compensatory draft picks either, as the NFL only permits 32 to be distributed. This is decided by the same formula that ranks each departing compensatory free agent against one another. This is why the Ravens only got four picks despite losing seven players who qualify.

Losing a compensatory free agent isn't the only way you can receive a special compensatory selection. If your team lost a front office employee of significant importance, who was hired away from another team and is considered by the NFL to be a minority in their role, you can get a pick for that departure as well. This is done, as the NFL describes it, as a way to;

""... promote equal employment opportunities and an inclusive workforce within NFL clubs.""

So do the Houston Texans have any compensatory picks coming up in 2025? According to OverTheCap, no, they don't. They haven't lost any major free agents at the same level as the ones previously lost by other teams, and they haven't lost any front-office staff who would warrant a pick in return.