As of Thursday night, the Houston Texans own the 38th overall pick in Round 2, but given general manager Nick Caserio, a trade could already be in the works.
The Texans are coming off an NFL Draft a year ago, where they technically landed three starters on Day 2. Jayden Higgins ended up becoming a quality No. 2 receiver while Tay Ersery started every game at either left or right tackle. Jaylin Noel rotated in between reps in the slot and outside, but saw most of his success come on special teams.
All three selections were made within the first 80 picks. As of now, Houston has four picks in the top 70, including three on Day 2.
Throughout the past two decades, teams haven’t had the most amount of success with pick No. 38. Most players have either underperformed or been transformed into nothing more than depth pieces on different teams.
Here’s every player drafted 38th overall since 2006
2020-2025
It’s still too soon to see what Henderson will be, but the rest outside of Barmore have been role players at best. As for Barmore, he’s been the anchor of a rebuilding defensive line in New England and a staple among talented run defenders. Over his five seasons, Barmore has racked up 15.5 sacks and 44 tackles for loss. He’s constantly considered among the top 12 interior defensive linemen in the sport, largely because of his frame and ability to take on double teams.
2010-2019
Smith, Howard and Ward, at one point, were viewed as potential top 12 players at their respective positions. Howard became one of the league’s better cover corners, earning an All-Pro nod in 2020 and four Pro Bowl nominations. Smith ended up bouncing around between Green Bay and Pittsburgh to close out his career, but he racked up at least six sacks each season from 2015 until 2023. Ward was the anchor of the Broncos’ Super Bowl defense in 2015 and earned three Pro Bowl nods between stops in Cleveland, Denver and Tampa Bay.
Outside of a solid season from Seferian-Jenkins in 2017, a near-1,000-yard campaign from Jones in 2020 and three decent seasons at middle linebacker from Te’o between San Diego and New Orleans, the rest of the picks are pretty forgettable.
2006-2009
Maualuga and Carlson were standouts in college at USC and Notre Dame, respectively, but neither was anything more than a role player in the pros. Carlson finished with a career-best seven touchdowns in 2009, but injuries and depth sidelined him for the majority of his career starting in 2010. Maualuga played nine NFL seasons and started in over 100 games, but he only finished with 100 tackles once in his tenure with the Bengals.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Who’s been drafted 38th overall since 2006: Better than a Round 1 player?
Reporting by Cole Thompson, Texans Wire / Texans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
