After months of excitement and hype throughout the leadup, the 2025 NFL Draft is officially over. The Huston Texans were one of the draft's most active teams, selecting nine rookies during their three-day stay at Lambeau Field, including promising names like Iowa State wideout Jayden Higgins and Minnesota blocker Aireontae Ersery.
One of the Texans' draft picks that stuck out the most was their selection of Florida quarterback Graham Mertz with the 197th overall pick. After all, taking a QB wasn't exactly at the top of most Houston fans' wishlists.
Interestingly enough, it hasn't taken Mertz long to draw even more attention amid the post-draft fallout.
Texans Rookie QB Graham Mertz's Post-Draft Comments Raise Eyebrows
One thing that NFL fans love the most about the draft is seeing a prospect's reaction to being drafted. Mertz wasn't an exception to this experience, as it didn't take long for a video to emerge of the rookie QB receiving a call from Houston head coach DeMeco Ryans, letting him know that he's officially a Texan.
Although the video provided a feel-good moment, it was the ex-Florida product's comments that raised the Texans fanbase's eyebrows.
"Let's do it. I meant everything I said, man," Mertz said to Ryans on the phone call. "Let's do it."
"I know you did, man, so we're fired up to have you," the Texans HC replied.
Born ready 😤 pic.twitter.com/Mm0qcymTnH
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) April 26, 2025
Naturally, Texans fans are all wondering the same thing: What did Mertz say to the Texans during the pre-draft process? Houston is unlikely to move on from starting QB C.J. Stroud any time soon, meaning the Florida prospect's comments could have something to do with the backup signal-caller job.
After all, the Texans' only QB options beyond Stroud are Davis Mills and Kedon Slovis.
Mills, 26, was drafted 67th overall by the Texans in 2021 with the hope that he could develop into their franchise gunslinger. Aside from a decent rookie year, the ex-Stanford Cardinal hasn't come close to looking like an NFL QB, completing only 330-of-554 passing attempts (59.6%) for 3,503 yards, 19 touchdowns to 15 interceptions, and a 78.2 passer rating in 25 outings (15 starts) since 2022.
Meanwhile, Slovis joined the Texans via their practice squad last offseason and didn't end up playing any regular-season games. Having said that, he did going 16-of-22 (72.7%) in the pocket for 149 passing yards without a pick in three preseason games with the rival Indianapolis Colts, leaving time to tell if he can have a similar performance this summer.
Regardless of Mills and Slovis' past, the reality is they're officially on the hot seat to step up now that Mertz is in town.
After four seasons at Wisconsin, Mertz made the smart decision to transfer to the University of Florida in 2023. The move paid off as his completion percentage improved to 73.7% across his two seasons with the Gators (compared to 59.5% with the Badgers), resulting in 3,694 passing yards and 26 TDs to five INTs in 16 outings.
Mertz is rehabbing from a season-ending ACL injury, though, so it remains to be seen when he'll be training camp-ready. Hopefully, his recovery continues to go as planned so that he can help the Texans emerge with the best possible backup QB for Stroud.