The Houston Texans are 1-6 and approaching the Nov. 3 trade deadline as potential sellers, or at least that is how prognosticators view the team.
According to Nate Davis from USA TODAY, one of the big pieces the club has to recoup their first and second-round selections lost in the Laremy Tunsil trade from a year ago is defensive end J.J. Watt. However, Watt doesn’t appear to be on the move. Davis speculates that could be because the Texans don’t have a real general manager in charge at the moment.
Houston Texans (1-6): No question they should be rebooting — and that means replenishing draft resources surrendered by ousted coach/GM Bill O’Brien, who already divested next year’s Round 1 and 2 selections. RB Duke Johnson and WRs Will Fuller, Randall Cobb and Kenny Stills might bring decent value. But bigger picture, whither DL J.J. Watt? The aging superstar might love the opportunity to make a Super Bowl run with, say, Seattle and letting him leave could accelerate a rebuild in Houston. But will team chairman Cal McNair sign off on any significant proposals with no permanent front office in place?
Houston currently has executive vice president of football operations Jack Easterby filling in as interim general manager. Easterby took over the role after the club fired coach and general manager Bill O’Brien on Oct. 5 after the club fell 31-23 to the Minnesota Vikings to start the year 0-4.
Easterby’s wheelhouse is character development. The only football operations experience Easterby has prior to being a maven in character development was in 2004 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. From 2005-10 in the South Carolina athletics department, it was character development, the same as it was from 2011-12 with the Kansas City Chiefs, same as it was from 2013-19 with the New England Patriots.
McNair has also indicated Easterby would go back to football operations once the 2020 season is over and they have a full-time general manager in place.
Even if the Texans had a full-time general manager in place, there is no guarantee a trade would happen as Watt has expressed numerous times he intends to win a championship in Houston, not elsewhere, no matter how beneficial it could be to his career resume.