Texans Still Eyeing Trade-Up From No. 13

Texans general manager Nick Caserio has made it clear he is more than willing to make a trade involving the team’s second first-round pick in tonight’s draft. Even if they keep the other – the third overall selection – the team is eyeing a move back into the top 10, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). 

[RELATED: Texans Willing To Trade One First-Round Pick]

As Schefter details, the Texans are “trying to position themselves” so that a move for a specific target in the latter half of the top 10 becomes feasible. That would open up the possibility of a deal with either of the New York teams (the Jets are slated to pick fourth and 10th, while the Giants own Nos. 5 and 7). The latter in particular has been named as one of multiple trade-down candidates, depending on how the top of the board shakes out.

However, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer speculates that Seattle is actually the key team in this situation. He reports (on Twitter) that some in the league believe Caserio plans to take an offensive tackle third overall, then use the trade to move back in front of the Seahawks to select cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. Houston has long been linked to Evan Neal at No. 3, and was recently said to have Stingley rated higher than presumed top corner Ahmad Gardner.

While it remains to be seen which team the Texans would be partnering with to pull off such a move – as well as the price they are willing to pay to do so – this is certainly a situation worth monitoring. A pair of top 10 prospects could go a long way to Houston accelerating the rebuild as they try to move forward from the Deshaun Watson era.

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