Perfect Texans 2024 NFL Draft plan: DeMeco Ryans has eyes on defensive upgrades

The Houston Texans were one of the best stories from the 2023 NFL season. After being arguably the worst team in the league last year, first-year head coach DeMeco Ryans came in and brought a different energy while the front office hit the 2023 NFL Draft out of the park with the selections of C.J. Stroud, Will Anderson Jr. and Tank Dell. That directly led to Houston winning the AFC South, and the Texans even upset the Cleveland Browns in Super Wild Card Weekend. This past season was an incredible start for the new-look Texans, but there’s no time to celebrate. Here comes the offseason.

Free agency is important, but the draft is where real contenders are built. What should the Texans be focused on in the 2024 NFL Draft? That’s what we’re here to explore. 

Texans 2024 draft picks

(Per Tankathon)

1

23 (from Cleveland)

2

59

3

86 (from Philadelphia)

4123 (from Cleveland)41277235 (from New Orleans)72447246 (from Kansas City)

Ryan Wilson

EDGE Laiatu Latu (No. 27 overall)

UCLA

Chris Trapasso

EDGE Bralen Trice

Washington

Josh Edwards

DL Jer’Zhan Newton

Illinois

Shore up the secondary

We are going to be talking about the defensive side of the ball mostly, and that’s something Ryans specializes with. While this unit made incredible strides relative to the 2022 campaign, there’s room for improvement. One area is the secondary, which ranked in the bottom 10 in passing yards surrendered per game. 

Houston actually finished the regular season ranked No. 29 in yards per attempt allowed (7.7), and allowed the most passing yards and second-most yards per attempt vs. play action. Derek Stingley Jr. had a nice year, but he needs help in the secondary. There’s going to be turnover on the back end with Steven Nelson, Eric Murray, Kareem Jackson, Tavierre Thomas, Adrian Amos and others looking for new deals.

The Texans don’t HAVE to take a cornerback/safety in the first round. You’ll note above that none of our three CBS Sports NFL…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/perfect-texans-2024-nfl-draft-plan-demeco-ryans-has-eyes-on-defensive-upgrades/

Author : Jordan Dajani

Publish date : 2024-01-23 15:15:54

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