It's finally NFL draft week, and the action begins on Thursday evening. The Houston Texans are heading to Lambeau Field with seven 2025 draft picks at their disposal, leaving time to tell which prospects general manager Nick Caserio will add to help his team chase a third straight AFC South title next season.
Much like the rest of the NFL, the Texans have several areas they'd love to upgrade this week — especially the wide receiver room. Stefon Diggs' offseason departure, combined with Tank Dell recovering from a serious knee injury, has left Houston needing to bolster its WR ranks, which see underperforming veterans kicked to the curb in favor of hungry rookies.
That includes one wideout who's clearly on thin ice with the Texans.
Texans WR Xavier Hutchinson is On Thin Ice Before 2025 NFL Draft
If the Texans are looking to trim some WR-related fat or want to replace an underperformer with an incoming rookie, Xavier Hutchinson could be the odd man out.
Houston fans were interested to see what Hutchinson could do after he was drafted 205th overall in 2023. The St. Augustine, FL native was coming off an impressive final collegiate campaign that saw him lead the Big 12 in receptions (107) and receiving yards (1,171) while finding the end zone six times in 12 games with the Iowa State Cyclones.
Sixth-round picks don't always make an immediate NFL impact, but that doesn't change how disappointing Hutchinson has been so far. The 24-year-old wideout has only caught 20-of-45 targets (44.4%) across 32 games (3 starts) with the Texans, converting those opportunities into only 207 receiving yards without a touchdown.
He was also Pro Football Focus' worst-graded receiver as a rookie (47.3) and didn't do much to improve in that regard in Year 2, finishing the 2024 season with the 113th-best grade (57.8) among 133 WRs.
Even though he's still young enough (in theory) to turn things around, Hutchinson hasn't done much to give fans a reason to believe in a potential bounce-back. He had nearly as many games without any receptions last season (7) as he did with one or more (9), highlighting the need to replace him with a rookie playmaker hungry enough to make an immediate impact.
As for a potential divorce, the Texans have options. Spotrac lists Houston as saving $989,074 if they cut or trade Hutchinson before June 1, however, those savings will jump to $1.03 million if they wait until after that date.
The Texans should consider those savings if they don't view Hutchinson as a long-term fixture in the aerial attack. It's best to cut ties sooner rather than later, avoiding his potentially becoming an offensive black hole for the third consecutive season.
At the end of the day, the Texans' WR room's outlook and Hutchinson's future with the franchise should be much clearer after the NFL draft is finished.