The Houston Texans 2020 NFL Draft Class is complete with five new players selected in the NFL’s first-ever virtual draft process.
“We targeted certain guys in the draft and obviously we didn’t get all of them, you never do, but we were able to get five that we really liked and I feel really good about that,” head coach and general manager Bill O’Brien said Saturday. “Relative to the free agents that are still out there, that’s why I’m saying there’s still a lot of opportunities to build the roster in different ways as we head on down the road here.”
The Texans kicked off their draft by adding two defensive players to their front seven, TCU defensive tackle Ross Blacklock in the second round (40th overall) and Florida outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard in the third (90th overall) on Day 2.
O’Brien made three trades in this year’s draft, all on Day 3. The Texans traded back with Miami from the 111th spot and then moving up to No. 126 to select offensive tackle Charlie Heck.
“I think he can play both sides,” O’Brien said. “Great guy. Really smart, works hard. Obviously his dad is a coach. We were thrilled to be able to go up there and get him. We made a couple of moves today that we were happy with and that was one. We were able to go up there and get a guy that we really targeted and we liked at that spot.”
Houston gained an additional fourth-round pick from the Dolphins (No. 141) and gave up two compensatory seventh-round picks to the Los Angeles Rams when trading up to the 126th spot. The Texans also added depth to its secondary, drafting Penn State cornerback John Reid in the fourth round (141st) who brings speed and versatility.
“I do think that he can play on the inside,” O’Brien said. “I think he’s got good quickness, he’s got good toughness. I’ve known John for a while. When I was at Penn State he was a sophomore in high school and came to our camp. I think we offered him a scholarship right there. Really smart guy, comes from a great family. But yeah, I think he can do both. I think he can play on the inside and I also think that he’ll help us on special teams. That was another guy that we felt really good about that we had targeted and we were really hoping would be there, and he was there.”
The Texans drafted Rhode Island wide receiver Isaiah Coulter for their fifth and final draft selection. Houston traded its final remaining seventh-round pick (240th) to New Orleans for the Saint’s 2021 sixth-round selection.
With a virtual offseason program up next and no on-field work, rookies will have a bigger learning curve under the current COVID-19 restrictions.
“I think that we took a lot of that into account,” O’Brien said. “When you look at Ross (Blacklock) and Jon (Greenard) and Charlie (Heck) and John Reid and Isaiah Coulter, you’re talking about mature guys, guys that have overcome adversity in their lives, guys that understand work ethic, guys that understand how important practice is, guys that understand what it means to be a good teammate and be hungry and humble. I think we got those type of guys with all these guys.”
With the draft complete, teams across the NFL now begin the process of signing undrafted college free agents.