The Houston Texans are one of the many teams trying to figure out their quarterback situation for 2015. The team had the No. 1 draft pick last season and passed up on everyone, drafting Jadeveon Clowney with the top pick instead of quarterbacks like Teddy Bridgewater or Johnny Manziel. Now that decision could be coming back to bite them as Houston struggles to figure out the best move at the position.
By all accounts, the Texans quarterback rotation failed in 2014. Ryan Fitzpatrick started the season, but was injured. Ryan Mallett took over the starting job, but then got injured. Tom Savage even saw some playing time before he too got injured. Fitzpatrick never truly looked the part of a starting quarterback which is leaving head coach Bill O'Brien to consider all options moving forward.
According to Mallett, he is hopeful to be a part of the bigger picture come 2015. Approaching free agency, Mallett could be a hot name on the market, but his intentions are to remain in Houston if they will have him. When speaking with the media, the Houston Chronicle reports that Mallett is not interested in free agency and said, "I'd like to be back" when asked about his contract status in Houston. He acknowledged that it is nice to be wanted and he was happy when Houston made the trade for him back in August.
Many NFL experts believe Mallett has a lot of potential as a starting quarterback. He got an impressive win over the Cleveland Browns in Week 11 before tearing his pectoral muscle in the following game. Mallett said he is hoping to be healthy by the time OTAs come around and he has started throwing the ball around a little in order to stay in shape.
The feeling is mutual between Mallett and the Texans. O'Brien told the media at the NFL scouting combine that the team's quarterback rotation started with Mallett and he fully expected a deal to get done with the quarterback. O'Brien played a big role in the quarterback getting traded to Houston in the first place as they had worked together with the New England Patriots.
"If you look at our offense, we'd like to bolster the quarterback position, and one way to do that is by bringing back Ryan," O'Brien said, via the Houston Chronicle. "We'd like to have him back in Houston. He's smart, and he's a hard worker, and he understands our system. I like the fact that when he wasn't playing he was really into the game. He listened to every play call on an earpiece. There are a lot of things that make me believe he can be a starter in this league."
The Texans could release players like Fitzpatrick to save cap space and sign another veteran off the market for the chance that Mallett is not healthy or ready to play. Savage is really an unknown at this point and the Texans will not put their rotation into the hands of Thad Lewis or Case Keenum. If a deal for Mallett is not done, the team could attempt trades for Nick Foles or Kirk Cousins.
