NFL Draft 2016 Round 1: Houston Texans Select Will Fuller

With the 21st pick in Round 1 of the 2016 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans select…

Will Fuller!

The Texans traded up from the 22nd slot to the 21st with the Washington Redskins, giving up their 22nd pick and a future 2017 sixth-rounder to nab the wide out.

For the first time in recent memory, the Texans have pretty much filled their off season needs via free agency before the draft.

The Texans went out and nabbed top free agents in Brock Osweiler and Lamar Miller to plug the gaping holes vacated by Arian Foster and whomever was the flavor of the week under center.

But the draft certainly comes at the right time where supplemental needs are to be filled.

Now is the time more than ever to ensure that the Texans can’t miss in these later rounds because a lot of these guys found will likely have a solid role on our roster.

You don’t have to take my word for it, ESPN’s Trey Wingo has mentioned that the 33 percent of an NFL team’s final roster are filled with picks in Rounds 4 through 7.

More from House of Houston

That’s an interesting stat so the Texans will need to do everything they can to make it count and ensure that our fan base is proud of their work.

After all, it’s the fans that our the fuel to the NFL’s massive engine right?

I’m thrilled that the Texans were able to find a stud in this round and Fuller could certainly be someone we’d see regularly lined up on offense eventually.

This guy loves the deep ball and is one of the speedier wide receivers in the draft with the innate ability to maneuver quite deftly around defenders.

His biggest knock?

His hands.

More from Houston Texans

Although he had a successful career while at Notre Dame, there are concerns of his ability to catch effectively at the next level.

In his last two seasons, he logged nine drops for the Fighting Irish.

His frame has also been under scrutiny, with doubts that he can handle wear-and-tear of being a regular-down guy.

How will they use him now?

Bill O’Brien said that they’ll use him on the outside starting out and work his way to inside as time progresses and he gets his feet wet with the system that he has in place.

Versatility and hard-work continue to be the attributes/mindset that the Texans’ staff look for in players to add to the team and Fuller is none the exception.

According to FOX 26’s, Mark Berman, there is even talk of adding him to the kick return unit as well so watch out Keith Mumphery!

Here’s what the experts had to say about the Texans’ choice:

Mike Mayock of the NFL Network:

"“This pick makes a ton of sense to me. He has totally legit speed; a game-changer from a speed perspective. He tracks the deep ball extremely well. I worry about his hands. He’s a little bit like Ted Ginn of the Panthers. He will make big plays, but you will have to put up with a few drops.”"

SportsTalk 790’s Jayson Braddock via Adam Clanton:

Just another year at the draft for Houston. So very #Texans of them to trade up ONE SPOT.

"He's got baby midget hands."

-@JaysonBraddock
— Adam Clanton (@adamclanton) April 29, 2016

So it’s definitely well understood that many have concerns about the 6’0,” 186-pound receiver with 8 1/4″ hands in regard to his ability to catch.

But I think he’s in good hands — no pun intended, or maybe? — with the Texans’ coaching staff to mold him into the player that he needs to be in order to be successful in the NFL.

But all in all, we’ve got a deep threat to add to the plethora of wide outs we already have and he should complement our offense quite well.

We’ll have to see.

Next: Houston Texans Mock Draft 2.0

Fuller caught 62 balls for 1,258 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2015, a notable performance that earned him team MVP honors.

Go Texans.

Home/Houston Texans