Houston Texans News: April 18, 2014

Houston Texans News

Ultimate Texans " Texans get a week off for Easter while management brings in prospects
After completing phase one of their voluntary offseason conditioning program, the Texans are getting a week off for Easter while the front office prepares for the arrivals of defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and quarterbacks Johnny Manziel and Teddy Bridgewater.

2014 NFL Mock Draft: Could Houston Texans land Jadeveon Clowney, Blake Bortles? | Audibles - SI.com
To this point, through my previous six 2014 NFL mock drafts (seven, if you count the adjustments made on Mock 3.1 when Marcus Mariota decided to stay at Oregon), I have kept things pretty straightforward. No longer.

Houston Texans exercise fifth-year option on J.J. Watt's contract - ESPN
The Houston Texans have officially exercised the fifth-year option on DE J.J. Watt's contract for the 2015 season, per a league source.

Houston Texans pick up J.J. Watt's fifth-year option - NFL.com
The Texans keep their star pass rusher in house through 2015. The Jets' Muhammad Wilkerson, Ravens' Jimmy Smith and Chargers' Corey Liuget also had their fifth-year options picked up.

Houston Texans looking to trade No. 1 pick in 2014 NFL draft? | Audibles - SI.com
The Houston Texans can't possibly trade the first overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft, can they? Seems a little odd to think they'd make such a move, but there's a "chance" of it happening according to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.

Brian Cushing says he's 100 percent healthy for Texans - NFL.com
Houston linebacker Brian Cushing tweeted Wednesday that he's been medically cleared after two seasons marred by knee injuries. For the Texans to succeed, they'll need him back -- and as strong as before.

Extension should come next for J.J. Watt - ESPN
J.J. Watt's contract situation is a new one for the league -- one for which a lot of the first-round picks from the 2011 season are the guinea pigs.

Where Texans' roster stands now: Defense - Houston Texans Blog - ESPN
Yesterday we caught ourselves up with the offensive side of the Houston Texans' roster following moves over the past few weeks. Today we take a look...

SVP & Russillo Talk to Trent Dilfer About The Quarterback Draft Class
ESPN NFL analyst Trent Dilfer dishes on his expectations for Teddy Bridgewater, Blake Bortles, Johnny Manziel and Derek Carr, what the Texans should do with the No. 1 pick and more.

Where do Texans rank among highest-paying NFL teams? - Houston Chronicle
Can the Texans buy themselves a Super Bowl championship? The answer, at least according to the Global Sports Salaries Survey, may surprise.

Around the League

NFL Draft 2014: What do you watch when evaluating tight ends? - SBNation.com
What kind of things will teams be looking for among the prospects in this year's draft? Danny Kelly walks us through the traits scouts look for when evaluating tight ends.

2014 NFL Draft: Dee Ford makes music on and off the football field - SBNation.com
The pass rusher from Auburn hopes to experience even more success at the next level after winning a national championship and Senior Bowl MVP trophy.

Chad Johnson signs with CFL's Montreal Alouettes - SBNation.com
Chad Johnson is making his triumphant return to professional football. Get ready Montreal!

Dominique Easley pro day results: Florida DT moves past ACL injury - SBNation.com
Dominique Easley drew a big crowd to Gainesville for his pro day Thursday. He impressed everyone with his mobility after tearing his right ACL last September.

Quotables: Jets grab Chris Johnson, Giants ink Josh Freeman - SBNation.com
Wednesday was a busy day in the Big Apple, where the Giants signed a new backup quarterback and the Jets signed one playmaker and hosted another.

Houston & Collegiate Sports

Royals 5, Astros 1: Astros missing pieces, get swept by Royals - The Crawfish Boxes
Because the Astros certainly got flushed down the tubes in this three-game set.

Rockets playoff schedule: Blazers travel to Houston for game one on Sunday - The Dream Shake
The NBA released the playoff schedules, and the Rockets kick off on Sunday night in Houston.

Texas Longhorns football: WR vs DB drill - Burnt Orange Nation
Watch the skill position players go head-to-head with the defensive backs in an open-field tackling drill.

Red Raider Hoops | Four More Players Sign to 2014 Class - Viva The Matadors
Yesterday, Texas Tech received the letters of intent from Keenan Evans, Norense Odiase, Justin Jamison and Davaugntah Williams to join Justin Gray and Zach Smith.

Thursday Daily Bears Report: The Golden Age - Our Daily Bears
Funny how a slow news day gives way to a hot one. The breaking news banner is getting a workout after football picked up two recruits over the last two days, and several Baylor teams have won/are...

Matt Joeckel will transfer from Texas A&M to TCU - Good Bull Hunting
Senior QB Matt Joeckel will transfer from Texas A&M to TCU.

Texas Longhorns Football Recruiting: Kirk & Collin Johnson Commit To Longhorns - Barking Carnival
The Horns add another 2015 athlete and their first 2016 recruit.

Javier Hernandez wants out of Manchester United. Could he fit in MLS? - Dynamo Theory
So rumors have circulated for months now Javier Hernandez, aka Chicharito, wants to be transferred from Manchester United in the summer transfer window. It's a long stretch, but could he fit into Major League Soccer's structure?

#TTTQ Tweet of the Night

Last night's question from @battleredblog was - Rank these #Texans current needs from most glaring to least: QB, OT, LB, DE, OG, CB, NT. #TTTQ

BRB'ers, how do you rank them?