Houston Texans: Top 30 players in franchise history

The Texans shocked the NFL world in 2006 when they opted to select Mario Williams with the first overall pick in the draft over the likes of Vince Young and Reggie Bush. It was particularly surprising that the team passed over Young, since the quarterback situation was tumultuous at best.

Williams was a dubbed a freak coming into the NFL. However, his collegiate career at North Carolina State caused some concern about how quickly he would acclimate to the NFL, given that he didn’t come from a traditional college football power. This looked to be the correct viewpoint, as Young won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and Bush succeeded in New Orleans, while Williams only managed 4.5 sacks in 2006.

However, this perspective quickly began to shift, as Williams broke out in 2007, while Young and Bush didn’t really improve that much. He had 14 sacks and a fumble returned for a touchdown. He followed that up with three more seasons of double-digit sacks.

All in all, Williams turned out to be the better pro between these three guys and the Texans made the right choice. He was selected to two Pro Bowls, had 53 sacks, 11 fumbles forced, three fumbles recovered and one touchdown. The team let him walk for greener pastures and a huge contract after the 2011 season.