Five Houston Texans Questions with The Wheelhouse’s Cody Stoots

The NFL draft is in the rearview mirror. As the NFL calendar hits a bit of a lull, we circle back to our group of sports personalities and experts to see what they thought about the draft and the rest of the offseason for your Houston Texans. Cody Stoots has his own YouTube channel that he dedicates to Texans talk and is a regular fixture on the Wheelhouse on 97.5 ESPN radio.

The conversation started with the Texans big day on the first day of the draft. The Texans took two of the top three players off the board and opinions around the internet were strong on both sides of the ledger. Let’s see how the afternoon host felt about the Texans haul.

Battle Red Blog: What do you think are reasonable expectations for C.J. Stroud in year one? Where do you see his ceiling when he does reach his potential?

Cody Stoots: I would like to see Stroud throw for more than 21 touchdowns. That is the high-water mark from the past two seasons for the quarterback room. He can and should beat that. I also would like for him to play 17 games this season as well. It is tough to tell where his ultimate finish is as a quarterback. If he has the Georgia game level of play every week, well then he’s a top-ten guy. If that is as irregular as his college stats, then he occasionally is a top-ten quarterback but mostly sits outside the top quarterback discussion.

BRB: Obviously, Nick Caserio gave up a lot to get Will Anderson. Do you think the gamble will ultimately be worth it? If not, what would you have liked to have seen the team do there instead?

CS: The gamble will be worth it. This is why you have excess draft picks, to use them however you see fit. The Texans aren’t operating in the red when it comes to next year’s draft. They didn’t have to overdraw a bank account to make this move to use a real-world analogy. I believe in Will Anderson being a regularly good player early, which will help soften the blows of not having that pick.

BRB: Most of the focus will be on Anderson and Stroud, but who are one or two guys from day two and three that you think the Texans fan base should keep their eye on? Do you have a personal favorite selection?

CS: Henry To’oTo’o and Tank Dell are the ones that really stand out to me. Dell was clearly a target of this team based on how many times they met with him. I don’t see the vision, but the front office and new quarterback certainly do. To’oTo’o lacks elite athleticism but he profiles similar to a few long-time linebackers who have had good careers. Will he be some dominant monster? No, I don’t believe he will be. Could he be a solid contributor? Absolutely. That is all you are really looking for past the fourth round.

BRB: June 1 will bring another round of cuts and movement in free agency. Are there any positions you think the Texans should target?

CS: I’m not impressed with the center room, but they have options. One more running back wouldn’t hurt my feelings. I wonder if there is another Jerry Hughes-like addition that can be made to add just a tiny more presence to the edge situation.

BRB: Vegas had the Texans at 5.5 wins before the draft. If I set the number at 6.5 are you going over or under? Are there any developments (on the positive end) that could change that number significantly?

CS: I would probably go over because that is the best way to make money in this bet! Haha. It would be very hard for me to find seven wins knowing the teams they play. This team just walks into too many games with a disadvantage at head coach or quarterback, or both. I would take the over, hoping you could steal four at home and swing three on the road, but I wouldn’t feel good about my wager in the slightest.

We want to thank Cody again for joining us for some post-draft analysis of the Houston Texans. Optimism is high for the Texans right now and you can ride the wave on the Wheelhouse on 97.5 from 3 PM to 7 PM every weekday.