Texans' Newest Hire Could Hint at Potential Draft Pick

The Houston Texans are heading into an important offseason. The past two seasons, the Texans have been able to claim the AFC South title but have come up short in the divisional round of the playoffs. With needs at receiver, offensive line and defensive line, there are a lot of ways Houston can approach the offseason – especially when it comes to the NFL Draft.

The Texans hold the 25th overall pick in April’s draft and it’s unsure which direction they’ll want to go. But a big hint may have come on Wednesday morning when they added a new coach to DeMeco Ryans’s staff.

New Coach Frank Okam Could Lead Texans to Select Darius Alexander in NFL Draft

According to KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson, the Texans are expected to hire Frank Okam as an assistant coach. A former teammate of Ryans, Okam dove into coaching career after retirement and served as a defensive line coach with the Las Vegas Raiders and Panthers, working with standouts Maxx Crosby and Derrick Brown. 

But his most interesting experience came the past three seasons when he was a defensive line coach with the Toledo Rockets.

That job may not mean much at first glance, but it’s worth noting that he worked with current draft prospect Darius Alexander. A 6-foot-4, 320-pound defensive tackle, Alexander was a menace for the Rockets, racking up 40 total tackles including eight tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks during his senior season.

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler also noted that Alexander was one of the biggest winners at last month’s Senior Bowl, potentially positioning himself as a first-round pick.

“The NFL covets traits, and Alexander has the physical traits for the next level,” Brugler told The Toledo Blade’s Kyle Rowland. “He has impressive movements for a 300-pounder with long arms [34 inches] and pops at contact. The fluidity in his body is what ties everything together and allows him to be effective.”

Brugler also noted that Alexander stood out in a draft class that is deep at defensive tackle and has already put himself in the mix to go early in this year’s draft.

“The defensive line is loaded in this draft class, including at the Senior Bowl, which says a lot that Alexander was able to stand out among higher-profile players,” Brugler continued. “He has put himself in the mix to be a top-100 pick.”

Alexander is currently 64th on Pro Football Focus’s big board and was projected to go to the Raiders with the 68th overall pick in Chad Reuter’s latest mock draft on NFL.com. That could change if Alexander has a strong performance at the NFL Scouting Combine and if he enters the first-round conversation, he’ll at least have an advocate with the Texans.

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