The Houston Texans went nuts in free agency with 22 acquisitions either by trade or signing.
The strategy was part of general manager Nick Caserio’s philosophy to hit “singles and doubles” in free agency rather than going for the big home run.
As a result, the Texans have bolstered their roster with players who are known quantities. Albeit their ceilings are pretty low, the Texans have gathered truly dependable players to fill spots along the roster.
For Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson and Brad Spielberger, the approach was “unusual” and “throwing a lot at the wall.” As a result, the Texans’ free agency moves didn’t necessarily impress them with the only big upgrade being edge defender Kevin Pierre-Louis, previously with Washington.
There are moves in this group that look excellent on paper, such as signing linebacker Kevin Pierre-Louis, who has back-to-back seasons with 80.0-plus PFF coverage grades, which also coincides with his heaviest workload on defense. In a league starved of good coverage linebacker play, Pierre-Louis is exactly the kind of smart gamble teams should take.
“We’re going to have to make sound decisions I would say, not to oversimplify it, but if we can meat-and-potatoes, hit some singles and doubles, try to improve the depth of our team, try to create as much competition as possible, really that’s probably the most rational strategy,” Caserio told Sports Radio 610 [KILT-AM] on March 12. “It doesn’t mean if we see a player that we think is to a point that we think he can help us and have an impact, we’ll always look at that. But just to understand that if you do that, it’s going to come at the expense of three other players.”
For Houston, the next phase in roster construction is the 2021 NFL draft. With just one pick in the top-100 at No. 67 overall in Round 3, it is unlikely Pro Football Focus will be handing out anything other than “below average” then, too.
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