The Houston Texans are narrowing down their quarterback options for the 2014 season as several free agents start to get picked up. With Matt Cassel and Chad Henne now off the market, the veteran pool is slim, leaving the team to either draft a rookie No. 1 overall or trade for someone. Bill O'Brien certainly has strong history with certain backsups in the league, so could the team make a move outside of the draft?
Ryan Mallett is certainly the most intriguing backup in the league. The current New England Patriots backup has been learning under Tom Brady for the past two seasons, making his value pretty high regardless of the lack of experience he may have. He has thrown a total of one pass in a regular-season game, but it appears learning under Brady overshadows the whole thing. O'Brien certainly knows what Mallett is capable of since he worked as offensive coordinator for the Patriots, so do the Texans make a move for third-year pro?
According to Jeff McClain of the Houston Chronicle reports the Texans have no interest in making a move for Mallett, "period." The case is certainly strong for trading for Mallett. O'Brien spent a year with the quarterback in his rookie season. That familiarity would allow for the Texans offense to not sputter too bad in a transition phase. Mallett comes with as many question marks as a rookie does and at least he has spent some time learning under one of the best. That is more than Johnny Manziel or Blake Bortles can say.
McClain reports the Texans are still set on drafting a rookie No. 1 overall and possibly keeping Matt Schaub on the roster to help develop him. Wide receiver Andre Johnson put in a request for Schaub to remain with the Texans and McClain believes he may get his wish.
Schaub is gaining a lot of interest from other teams around the league as they hope the Texans will simply release him in free agency. However, that would leave Houston with nothing but inexperience on the roster and no veteran to help mentor the young quarterbacks. Schaub's future is up in the air, but for now Mallett is staying put in New England.
