The Houston Texans opted for defense with the No. 1 overall pick despite needing a quarterback to man the offense after trading away Matt Schaub. In fact, the Texans did not address the need at all until the fourth round when they selected Pittsburgh's Tom Savage, a player most say is not ready to start in 2014. Still in need of another body on the roster, does Houston have something up their sleeve before training camp begins?
According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Houston is still working out a deal with the New England Patriots to acquire backup Ryan Mallett. When the Texans did not draft a quarterback in the first two rounds, this seemed like the move that would be made. The Texans had been rumored to favor Mallett for several months before the draft, but never made a deal with the Patriots. When the draft came and went and Mallett was still on the roster, it appeared the talks were dead, but Rapoport is saying the Patriots and Texans have rekindled talks and there is "mutual interest in making a deal.
New England made an interesting draft move that could be showing signs of a deal forthcoming. The Patriots drafted Jimmy Garoppolo in the second round despite having other needs to fill. The Patriots traditionally only carry two quarterbacks on their roster, so why bring in the rookie when Mallett is still very young and capable? It was mean the Patriots are preparing to lose Mallett sooner rather than later and need a backup plan if he departs.
The Texans need this deal to happen. Right now, their quarterback roster inspires very little confidence. Outside of Savage, Ryan Fitzpatrick is the lone veteran along with Case Keenum and TJ Yates who both attempted to start last year but failed in the effort. None of those four quarterbacks look like the leader of 2014.
Mallett has yet to throw a pass in a regular season game, but he has one of the highest stocks in the league thanks to Tom Brady. Playing behind one of the league's best quarterbacks makes a person pretty valuable and plenty of teams believe he has star potential. Rapoport believes the target date for a deal would be before May 27 when the Patriots report for OTAs. The Texas would likely have to offer a draft pick in return or they could easily just give up Yates or Keenum since one of them will get released if a trade is made.
