The Houston Texans picked two receivers in the 2023 NFL draft with third-rounder Tank Dell and sixth-rounder Xavier Hutchinson.
Throw in last year’s second-rounder John Metchie, who missed all of 2022 battling leukemia, and the Texans essentially have three rookies joining the team.
Houston’s receiving corps already has free agents Noah Brown, Steven Sims, and Robert Woods along with Nico Collins, Amari Rodgers, and Jalen Camp on the roster.
General manager Nick Caserio isn’t concerned with the group being too crowded.
“There will be an adjustment period probably for some, and then probably do some things offensively, some of the formations,” Caserio said April 29 after the draft. “Some guys will be better at certain things relative to others. Again, it’s really about letting the players ultimately determine how they actually all fit together and what their roles are. They all have things that they do well. They all have things they bring to the table, and we’ll try to put them in a position where they can accentuate those things.”
Caserio compared the Texans’ receiving corps to the offensive line in that attrition can take a surprising toll on a group.
Said Caserio: “I’d say that’s a position where it’s kind of like offensive line, like you have numbers until you don’t have numbers. Inevitably lose a receiver or two, so then you’re out there in training camp with eight or nine. It’s a high volume, high numerical position just in terms of having bodies, and kind of let the competition play itself out.”
Dell caught 109 passes for 1,398 yards and 17 touchdowns through 13 games with the Houston Cougars last season. Hutchinson provided Iowa State with 107 catches for 1,171 yards and six touchdowns through 12 games.
Meanwhile Metchie has been participating with the Texans during Phase 2 of their offseason workouts.
