The Houston Texans may have given away another game in the fourth quarter as they took the loss 23-20 to the Chicago Bears Week 3 at Soldier Field, but their 2022 draft class had a remarkable showing.
According to Josh Edwards from CBS Sports, the Texans had two defensive backs from the 2022 draft land in the top-5 of their rookie rankings following Week 3.
The first Texans defensive back was second-round safety Jalen Pitre, who had two interceptions and a sack.
There is a lot of value in a player that always finds himself around the football and that is Pitre. He is just as likely to be making plays in the backfield as he is in coverage. He was one broken tackle away from taking his first career interception to the house.
Defensive end Jerry Hughes was similarly impressed with Pitre’s performance despite the loss.
“Oh, he was phenomenal,” Hughes said after the game. “Young guy, he’s making great plays for us. I know he wanted to get up and score, but two big picks to kind of keep our offense in scoring territory, that’s what you want as a secondary.”
The Texans also had cornerback Derek Stingley take the No. 5 slot. Although the tilt with the Bears was more of a rushing battle for Houston’s defense, Stingley was able to have some good moments to crack the top-5.
Stingley projects a lot of confidence on the field and has the makings of a lockdown NFL cornerback. There were moments he could have shown better awareness in zone coverage but the arrow is pointing up.
The Texans will need their rookies in the secondary to continue to play at a high level as Houston hosts the high-powered Los Angeles Chargers led by Justin Herbert. Kickoff is at noon Central Time on Oct. 2 at NRG Stadium.
