Nick Caserio is getting ready to start his fourth NFL draft as general manager of the Texans.
A year ago, Caserio made two sensational picks — first with C.J. Stroud at No. 2 then with a wild trade back up to No. 3 to take Will Anderson Jr. Both ended up being home run picks as Stroud and Anderson each won NFL Rookie of the Year.
The Texans don't pick that early this time around after winning the AFC South and trading out of the first round, but that doesn't mean Caserio will sit on his laurels. There have been rumors the Texans could trade back up into the first round if the right player is still on the board.
Otherwise, the Texans will have three picks in the second of the draft and nine overall.
So before the actual draft kicks Thursday, let's take a look back at some of the tendencies that we’ve seen from Caserio in Houston and before while he was in New England with the Patriots.
SN's NFL DRAFT HQ
Live picks tracker | 7-round mock draft | Top 250 big board
How Texans GM Nick Caserio approached recent drafts
Power 5 Teams
Since joining the Texans in 2021, Caserio and the front office have selected 23 players in the draft. Of those, only one wasn’t from a Power 5 conference. That was Tank Dell from Houston, a school which has since become a Power 5 team after the Cougars joined the Big-12.
Expect this tendency to continue with the one caveat being that as talent dwindles on Day 3, the Texans could pivot to target a small school player if they keep their selections in the sixth and seventh rounds. One prospect that would be worth making the exception for is linebacker Tyrice Knight.
The 2nd round is for defensive backs
Caserio has a preference as far as the position he likes to target in the second round. Houston doesn’t have a first-round pick, currently, but with Caserio that could always change. If he stays put and doesn’t trade up into the first round, then the Texans will be slotted to select twice in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Since 2009, Caserio has made 22 selections in the second round of the draft. Of those 22 picks, almost half (10) were spent on defensive backs. Coincidentally, two of the Texans' biggest needs are at the cornerback and safety positions. The number becomes even more tilted if we look at what Caserio has done in the second round over the last nine years (which includes his time with the Patriots). Since the 2015 NFL draft, Caserio has drafted nine prospects in the second round with six of them being defensive backs.
Ennis Rakestraw Jr, Max Melton, Mike Sainristil, Tyler Nubin, Javon Bullard, Cam Hart, T.J. Tampa and Kamari Lassiter are some defensive backs to keep an eye out for when the Texans get on the clock in the second round this year.
NFL DRAFT RANKINGS: QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | EDGE
Trades on deck
There’s been a building rumor this week that the Texans could trade into the bottom of the first round to take a prospect that they like. It’s not far-fetched to believe as Caserio trades every year. He’ll be active and on the move, whether that’s into the first round or not will be seen, shortly.
He’s already traded out of the first round this year when he sent the No. 23 pick to the Vikings. Last year he famously traded up for Anderson Jr. The year prior he traded back for guard Kenyon Green in the first round, moved up for receiver John Metchie III in the second round as well as for linebacker Christian Harris in the third round. On Day 3 of the 2022 draft, he traded up for defensive tackle Thomas Booker.
His first draft day trade with the Texans to move up for receiver Nico Collins in the third round. That year he also traded up for linebacker Garret Wallow in the fifth round.
Here are all of Caserio's draft day trades:
| Year | Team | Traded away | Received |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Vikings | 1st round (No. 23) & 7th round (No. 232) | 2nd round (No. 42), 6th round (No. 188) & 2025 second-round pick |
| 2023 | Cardinals | 1st round (No. 12), 2nd round (No. 33), 1st round in 2024, 3rd round in 2024 | 1st round (No. 3 — Will Anderson, Jr.) & 2024 4th round (No. 105) |
| 2022 | Eagles | 1st round (No. 13) | 1st round (No. 15 — Kenyon Green), 4th round (No. 124 — traded to Browns), 5th round (No. 162 — traded to Broncos) & 5th round (No. 166 — traded to Bears) |
| 2022 | Browns | 3rd round (No. 68), 4th round (No. 108) & 4th round (No. 124) | 2nd round (No. 44 — John Metchie III) |
| 2022 | Broncos | 3rd round (No. 80) & 5th round (No. 162) | 3rd round (No. 75 — Christian Harris) |
| 2022 | Bears | 5th round (No. 166) & 6th round (No. 207) | 5th round (No. 150 — Thomas Booker) |
| 2021 | Rams | 5th round (No. 174) & 7th round (No. 233) | 5th round (No. 170 — Garret Wallow) |
| 2021 | Bills | 6th round (No. 203) & 6th round (No. 212) | 5th round (No. 174 — traded to Rams) |
| 2021 | Panthers | 4th round (No. 109), 5th round (No. 158) & 4th round in 2022 | 3rd round (No. 89 — Nico Collins) |
The talk has been mostly about Caserio trading back into the first round this year. Whether it’s the first round or not is fair to question but he’s definitely going to make trades over the three-day draft period. It’s what he does and what makes the experience so exciting for Texans’ fans as you never know what could happen next.
Texans 2024 NFL Draft targets: WR | RB | TE | OT | DB | DT | LB
Nick Caserio's draft history with Texans
Here is every draft pick Caserio has made for the Texans since he became the GM in 2021:
| Year | Round | Pick | Player | Position | College/Univ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1 | 2 | C.J. Stroud | QB | Ohio St. |
| 2023 | 1 | 3 | Will Anderson | LB | Alabama |
| 2023 | 2 | 62 | Juice Scruggs | OL | Penn St. |
| 2023 | 3 | 69 | Tank Dell | WR | Houston |
| 2023 | 4 | 109 | Dylan Horton | DL | TCU |
| 2023 | 5 | 167 | Henry To'oTo'o | LB | Alabama |
| 2023 | 6 | 201 | Jarrett Patterson | OL | Notre Dame |
| 2023 | 6 | 205 | Xavier Hutchinson | WR | Iowa St. |
| 2023 | 7 | 248 | Brandon Hill | DB | Pittsburgh |
| 2022 | 1 | 3 | Derek Stingley Jr. | CB | LSU |
| 2022 | 1 | 15 | Kenyon Green | OL | Texas A&M |
| 2022 | 2 | 37 | Jalen Pitre | S | Baylor |
| 2022 | 2 | 44 | John Metchie | WR | Alabama |
| 2022 | 3 | 75 | Christian Harris | LB | Alabama |
| 2022 | 4 | 107 | Dameon Pierce | RB | Florida |
| 2022 | 5 | 150 | Thomas Booker | DE | Stanford |
| 2022 | 5 | 170 | Teagan Quitoriano | TE | Oregon St. |
| 2022 | 6 | 205 | Austin Deculus | T | LSU |
| 2021 | 3 | 67 | Davis Mills | QB | Stanford |
| 2021 | 3 | 89 | Nico Collins | WR | Michigan |
| 2021 | 5 | 147 | Brevin Jordan | TE | Miami (FL) |
| 2021 | 5 | 170 | Garret Wallow | LB | TCU |
| 2021 | 6 | 195 | Roy Lopez | DL | Arizona |
Texans draft history with other positions
Do Texans hit on RB in this class?
Houston traded for Joe Mixon to upgrade the running back for the next two years. However, the running back room is thin behind him and Mixon has a ton of touches through his NFL career.
The Texans haven’t done well with selecting running backs in the draft. Their best return on investment at the position came over 20 years ago with the pick of Domanick Williams (originally Davis) in the fourth round of the 2003 NFL draft. In 2008 they used a third-round pick on Steve Slaton and it looked like a hit after one season before his steep decline. The same situation played out when they selected Ben Tate in the second round in 2010. The Texans got one good season out of him and the ride was mostly over.
Now, 20 years later, can they finally draft a back that will surpass Williams in ROI as a draft pick? It’s a good year to do so as the Texans have three picks between No. 86 and No. 127 in the draft.
While there aren’t any superior talents at the position that will go in the first round, there is a deep group of talented backs that will be available during the 86-127 range for the Texans. Houston needs to make their pick from the group, whether it’s Blake Corum, MarShawn Lloyd, Trey Benson, Will Shipley, Ray Davis, Jaylen Wright, Jonathon Brooks, Isaac Guerendo, Audric Estime, Braelon Allen or a few others, the Texans just need to look to solidify the talent and depth at the position.
MORE 2024 NFL DRAFT: Safest picks | Riskiest picks | Top sleepers | Small-school steals
Do Texans hit on TE?
The tight end position has seen a drought of drafted talent since Owen Daniels’ selection in 2006. It’s not due to a lack of effort as the Texans spent third-round selections on the position in 2014 (C.J. Fiedorowicz), 2018 (Jordan Akins) and 2019 (Kahale Warring).
Those selections were led by Bill O’Brien mostly. Despite re-signing Dalton Schultz, the Texans need to draft a tight end. This group of tight ends, after Brock Bowers is graded differently by everyone it seems. The Texans would need to select one in the same range that they’re considering adding a running back, between picks No. 86 and No. 127.
Caserio has taken a crack at the position in the draft but only with fifth-round selections of Brevin Jordan (No. 147 | 2021) and Teagan Quitoriano (No. 170 | 2022). The Texans could possibly come out of the draft with the second best tight end, while only needing to use either their third-round pick or one of their two fourth-round selections.
MORE NFL DRAFT: Worst regrets | Biggest busts | Biggest steals
