INDIANAPOLIS — The Houston Texans could choose to get younger at cornerback and not use their salary cap space in free agency to address the issue.
At the NFL Scouting Combine, the Texans had a formal meeting with former Florida Gators cornerback C.J. Henderson.
Unlike an informal meeting, which is limited to 15 minutes, includes just the position coach, and teams can have as many of them as they like, formal interviews are restricted to 45 players, are limited to 18 minutes, and typically include more members of the coaching staff and front office personnel.
#Florida CB C.J. Henderson says he had a formal meeting with the #Texans.
— Mark Lane (@therealmarklane) February 28, 2020
Henderson collected 26 tackles, three for loss, 1.0 sack, and 11 pass breakups in his nine games with the Gators. The Miami, Fla., native injured his ankle in the third game of the season and played through the injury for the rest of 2019.
Though Henderson watches every cornerback in the NFL to add aspects of their game to his, the 6-1, 202-pound defensive back’s favorite corner to watch is Patrick Peterson of the Arizona Cardinals.
“He’s one of my favorites, not only on the field, but off the field he’s a great person,” said Henderson. “On the field he’s very physical. He’s athletic. He finds the ball, he gets the ball.”
What makes Henderson a desirable target is his ability to play different coverages. Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham employed various coverages at Florida when he arrived in 2018.
“It was very different for us, compared to freshman year, mostly one coverage,” Henderson said. “So it was very different.”
For the Texans, they may not get a shot to take Henderson. According to Walter Football, Henderson is slated to go anywhere in the first or second round. Houston’s first selection in the 2020 NFL Draft occurs at No. 57 overall, deep in the second round. Henderson could be gone by that point, and trading up would be their only way to get him.