Did Texans Win Round 1 With C.J. Stroud and Will Anderson Jr. Picks?

The Texans will walk away from the first round with their next franchise quarterback and an elite franchise cornerstone on defense.

The Houston Texans came into the first round of the NFL draft in a prime position to dramatically change the future of their franchise, and they will leave the first round arguably the biggest winners of Day 1. 

After weeks of speculation that the second overall pick would not be a quarterback, the Texans put those rumors to rest when they took Ohio State's C.J. Stroud at No. 2 overall. 

Despite all the smoke around defensive prospects like Tyree Wilson the Texans made sure to get their next franchise quarterback. One look at Stroud's numbers in his two seasons starting at Ohio State and it is easy to see why he was the pick for the Texans. 

Stroud lit up numerous opposing defenses in two seasons, throwing for 8,123 yards with 85 touchdowns and only 12 interceptions while completing an astounding 69.3 percent of his passes. With the Texans looking to complete the rebuild and contend once again, adding Stroud gives them their quarterback of the future. 

They weren't done there, though, as they immediately traded up with the Arizona Cardinals for the No. 3 overall pick to take one of the defenders they were linked to in Alabama outside linebacker Will Anderson Jr. 

Last season they were 27th in scoring defense after allowing opponents to score 24.7 points per game, and moving up for Anderson shows that new coach DeMeco Ryans is eager to turn that around in his first season.

Luckily for Ryans, bringing in Anderson could go a long way to righting the ship on defense. His final season at Alabama saw him record 51 total tackles with 17 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. As impressive as those numbers were, they were a "down" year for the Alabama prospect.

Anderson's best season came in 2021 when he wreaked havoc on every opposing offense he faced. He recorded 101 total tackles with a staggering 31 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks while anchoring an elite Alabama defense. 

While the Texans did give up a hefty haul to move from No. 12 to No. 3, they have to be happy with doing so. Walking away from day one with their next franchise quarterback and an elite presence to build around on defense sets Houston up to take another step towards contending in the AFC South once again.

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You can find Connor Zimmerlee on Twitter @Connorjz98

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