The Houston Texans won the AFC South last year, but their sports betting odds of winning Super Bowl LV have plummeted to 50/1 after a series of awful trades by coach and GM Bill O’Brien — headlined by the trade of Pro Bowl wideout DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona for very little in terms of value. The Texans still have one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL in Deshaun Watson, but the team’s moves clearly have the oddsmakers (and a lot of Texans fans) shaking their heads. Let’s take a look at the selections Houston brought to town in the draft and their impact on the Super Bowl Odds Odds.
NFL Betting: Houston Texans 2020 Super Bowl Odds & Analysis After the Draft
Ross Blacklock might have been O’Brien’s best off-season decision
The Texans frittered away their first-round draft pick with a bad trade, of course, but with their second-round choice they actually made a solid pick. Blacklock fills a need for an interior defensive lineman, because the loss of J.J. Watt exposed their lack of depth. Watt tore a pectoral muscle and missed the second half of the 2019 campaign. ESPN Stats & Information reports that Houston’s D-line beat a blocker on 45 percent of snaps with Watt on the field last season — but just 27 percent when he was off the field. Blacklock played almost 60 percent of the team’s defensive snaps at nose tackle and had 3.5 sacks, tied for the team lead. The loss of D.J. Reader to Cincinnati via free agency made the need for depth even more significant.
Jonathan Greenard will also contribute to the team’s pass rush
At Florida, Greenard (an outside linebacker) led the SEC with 9.5 sacks and 23 tackles for loss. If you consider how many blue-chip defensive players there are in the SEC, the fact that Greenard led in those categories is eye-popping. Houston only picked up 31 sacks in 2019, 26th best in the league. The team already has Jacob Martin, Duke Ejiofor, Brennan Scarlett and Whitney Mercilus at outside linebacker, so Greenard not only adds depth but will push the players ahead of them in the competition for a starting job.
Charlie Heck could help protect Deshaun Watson
Heck will play at swing tackle behind Tytus Howard and Laremy Tunsil. He was a redshirt senior at North Carolina last year and started 12 games at left tackle after playing on the right side for the two previous years. Pro Football Focus reports that Heck permitted 14 pressures in 2019 but did not permit any sacks.
John Reid adds depth to the Houston secondary
Reid played cornerback at Penn State. In 2017, he was on the shelf for the whole season due to an ACL tear. As a fifth-year senior in 2019, he notched 37 tackles and a pair of interceptions.He adds depth for the Texans, behind Lonnie Johnson, Gareon Conley and Bradley Roby, and he should also kick in on special teams.
Isaiah Coulter gives Deshaun Watson a speed receiver — but is it enough?
The Texans lost their elite receiver in DeAndre Hopkins. They have added some decent replacements in Brandin Cooks and Randall Cobb, and they still had Will Fuller, Keke Coutee and DeAndre Carter. Coulter ran a 4.45 40 at the NFL combine, but it’s hard to argue that any of the Houston additions will undo the damage that O’Brien wrought when he shipped Hopkins out of town.
