Houston Texans coach and general manager Bill O’Brien said 2020 would be a veteran type of year when it came to roster construction, and he wasn’t kidding.
The Texans signed former 2016 Pittsburgh Steelers fourth-round pick Jerald Hawkins Monday, according to his agent. Details of the contract were not disclosed.
Hawkins, a former LSU Tiger, played five games for the Steelers in 2017, starting in one of them. The 6-6, 305-pound Baldwin, Louisiana, native hurt his shoulder in his rookie preseason, which limited his playing time with Pittsburgh. In 2018, he sustained a torn quadriceps during organized team activities, and was subsequently placed on injured reserve.
The Steelers traded Hawkins and a 2021 seventh-round pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at the end of the 2019 preseason for a 2021 sixth-round selection.
“The potential has always been there to be a rotational offensive tackle, but injury problems have severely limited him,” Steelers Wire managing editor Curt Popejoy said.
The Texans currently have Roderick Johnson as their penciled-in swing tackle. However, the club is constantly looking for better options. Though the Texans drafted Charlie Heck in the fourth-round, he may not be ready to take over the swing tackle job. Houston also has Brent Qvale, Kyle Murphy, David Steinmetz, Elijah Nkansah, and Rick Leonard on the roster.
Houston recently brought in former New England Patriots tackle Antonio Garcia for a visit.
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