The Houston Texans have added three former first-round cornerbacks on their roster in Bradley Roby, Gareon Conley, and Vernon Hargreaves. The first was a free agent signing in March, the second a midseason trade, and the third a waiver claim.
Coach Bill O’Brien provided reasons Friday as to why he thinks the Texans are the perfect organization to get the most out of top tier picks who weren’t so stellar with their original draft teams.
“I think part of it is what we’ve seen on film, how we feel like their skill set can fit with what we do, what we know about them relative to Gareon or Vernon or some of the guys that we brought in that we studied in the draft, Laremy Tunsil, Kenny Stills, when they were coming out,” O’Brien said.
The Texans simply don’t look at the talent and follow through with the glint in their eye developed from watching highlights. The Houston personnel and scouting department goes through extensive homework and coordinates with the coaching staff to determine if the players would finally breakout with the Texans or if they’re truly busts.
“We do have a background with them,” said O’Brien. “We look at a lot of different data points. We look at a lot of different contractual situations, situations relative to where they are in their contract relative to are they still on their rookie deal, is it something where you’re just bringing a guy in for basically six games, do you want to do that, do you not want to do that.”
Ultimately, the Texans seek to make decisions that benefit the club, not add another collection to their cabinet of former college standouts.
“I don’t think it’s anything other than we feel like this guy could fit for our team, is this a good decision for our team, and if we believe it is — the consensus is it is — then we try to execute the deal.”