2022 NFL Draft: Updated Draft Order (Week Eight)

Your Houston Texans are plummeting in the power rankings but climbing the draft order, which is all that matters at this point.

With their foreseen loss to J.J. Watt, DeAndre Hopkins, and the undefeated Arizona Cardinals, Houston inches closer to the coveted #1 pick in next April’s NFL Draft. While the winless Detroit Lions are still hanging onto the #1 pick with the death-grip of a team that’s been rebuilding since 1958, Houston is trying to knock them off the mound.

ESPN

3. Houston Texans (1-6)

Average draft position: 3.2

FPI chance to earn No. 1 pick: 24.5%

FPI chance to earn top-five pick: 85.8%

NFL.com

2. Houston Texans

1-6 · .532

Biggest needs: QB, WR, CB

CG: To say Brandin Cooks is getting a lion’s share of the action among Texans wide receivers is an understatement. He’s the lone true threat on the outside in Houston, which means the position should be high on the team’s priority list.

NBC Sports

1 - Detroit Lions, 0-7

2 - Philadelphia Eagles (via Miami, 1-6)

3 - Houston Texans, 1-6

Bleacher Report

1. Detroit (0-7)

2. Philadelphia (via Miami - 1-6)

3. Houston (1-6)

CBS Sports

1 - Detroit Lions

2 - Houston Texans

And, the mock drafters are priming the pipeline as well.

Walter Football

3. Houston Texans: Matt Corral, QB, Ole Miss Deshaun Watson expressed his frustration with the Texans. He seemed likely to be traded, and now he’s in legal trouble. Houston drafted Davis Mills, but he has proven to be just a pedestrian backup quarterback.

Matt Corral developed well under Lane Kiffin, completing 71 percent of his passes in 2020.

Uggh, Lane Kiffin. If Bill O’Brien and Jon Gruden had a poor man’s version of themselves made in one body, it would be Monte’s kid.

NBC Sports

3. Texans: Malik Willis, QB, Liberty

The NFL trading deadline is fast approaching (November 2nd) and several rumors suggest the Texans may unload former Houston superstar quarterback, Deshawn Watson. Even if Watson isn’t traded, it’s clear he will no longer be the Texans’ quarterback going forward, so drafting another potential franchise signal caller remains a viable option. Willis is a dual threat quarterback with a cannon arm who competes with a single-mindedness ownership and fans would love to support.

Say what you will about best player available and drafting for need, but Malik Willis ticks just about all the boxes for the current Texans regime. He’s from a Christian school, passes the character/culture test, has way more upside than Davis Mills, and if Pep Hamilton can earn his paycheck, Willis just might have a solid NFL career in Houston...even though that also depends on the Texans getting an offensive line coach who can make an NFL caliber offensive line to (1) protect the signal-caller and (2) run block.

Other players mocked to the Texans include Aidan Hutchinson (EDGE out of Michigan), Derek Stingley Jr. (CB from LSU), Kayvon Thibodeaux (DE from Oregon), and DeMarvin Leal (DL from Texas A&M).

While things are certainly not going to stay the same, a blind man in a blackout can see Houston is all about the tank at this stage - as they should be.