The Houston Texans have had by far the best free agency so far in the 2024 offseason, but that doesn't mean they don't still have holes to fill and needs to address. As we have already addressed, the Texans have three main positions of need, and luckily for them, most of those needs are positions that are super deep in the draft, so losing that No. 23 pick in the first round isn't as big of a deal as you would think.

They can still get some very, very quality players that fill those needs in the second round. One of the positions they should definitely think about addressing is wide receiver. Sure, they have Nico Collins, a 1,000-yard receiver, and Tank Dell, a 700-yard receiver with seven touchdowns in just 11 games, but it wouldn't hurt to grab another guy for C.J. Stroud.

Noah Brown is currently wide receiver three on this team and is the slot receiver. Now, Brown made some great plays last year that really helped the Texans, but he isn't a guy that can change a game. There are so many receivers in this draft that have that kind of potential.

If the Texans want to keep Stroud happy and make him the happiest man in football, there are three guys the Texans can target in the second round at the position at pick No. 42.

Three wide receivers Texans should target in the second round

Keon Coleman, Florida State

When you talk about the best hands in the class, there aren't many who have better hands than Coleman does. If you look at the top 10 catches of the 2023-24 college football season, Coleman will likely have two on there. And he's physical, even when he's going up to get the ball.

He is very good and is another guy who could play right now, and he can play multiple positions. A to Z Sports' Big Board has him as the 37th-ranked player in the class and the seventh-ranked wide receiver in an extremely deep class. He is projected to go in the middle of the second or in the earlier picks of the second round. Here are some of his strengths and weaknesses:

STRENGTHS

• Dominant contested target with strong hands & excellent play strength
• Subtle hand usage at the catch point to disarm corners and keep himself clean
• Boxes out crashing DBs & secures the ball through contact
• One of the best run blocking receivers I've scouted
• Good instincts and vision as a ballcarrier
• Capable of winning vertically on double moves
• Can power through press coverage with physical hand usage & wipe moves
• Alpha play-style/demeanor

WEAKNESSES

• Very little separation on tape. Route breaks are rounded, clunky, & upright
• Average athletic traits. Slow starter with underwhelming top speed
• Not an advanced route runner. Telegraphs breaks & does little to set up defenders
• Needs extra steps to throttle down & stop his momentum
• Lacks agility & foot quickness to defeat press coverage
• Will struggle to separate consistently vs. NFL man coverage
• Contested targets were not an efficient play (10/30 in 2023)
• Lacks juice to avoid tackles & create after the catch

Ladd McConkey, Georgia

McConkey could very well be there in round two, as he is one of the more difficult players to gauge teams' feelings. He has all the talent in the world and can be very good, so taking him in the first round wouldn't be a reach. He fits every box for what DeMeco Ryans is looking for in a wide receiver.

McConkey is A to Z Sports' 31st overall prospect on our big board and the sixth-ranked wide receiver. The Chiefs need a guy who can get open almost at will. They need a guy who converts third downs, has great separation, and can get to another gear with his speed, as that seems to fit the trend they like. McConkey ticks those boxes. However, he does have some weaknesses with those strengths. Here are both:

STRENGTHS

• Shifty & precise route runner at all levels of the field
• Uses physical hands & quick footwork to create leverage vs press
• Manipulates corners with head fakes & stuttering steps
• Minimal stall, sinking his hips & cutting off routes on the vertical plane
• Sharp hip-sink & sudden acceleration on stop-go routes
• Midpoints zone coverage defenders & runs routes at the proper depth
• Good speed to stack coverage early & extend separation
• Leans away from his break to influence CBs into early hip-turns
• Elusive after the catch, but minimal unnecessary dancing
• Gives consistent effort as a run-blocker

WEAKNESSES

• Below-average size/frame
• A small catch radius will cap his effectiveness in the middle of the field
• Only two career 100+ yard games
• Struggled to stay healthy at Georgia
• Steep dropoff in route efficiency if the CB is in phase
• He was mostly given free releases, so press experience is limited
• Will need to be protected from difficult blocking assignments
• Bigger CBs can interrupt his release if they land a punch

Xavier Worthy, Texas

I know what some of you are thinking: the Texans already have the same type of player in Tank Dell, and you would be somewhat correct. The two comps we have for Worthy are Dell and Zay Flowers, which are spot on. However, I'd argue that Dell can play the slot, as can Worthy, and both are versatile. I'd also argue that you cannot pass on the speed that Worthy has if he falls to pick 42. He literally set the fastest 40-yard dash time ever at the NFL Combine.

On A to Z Sports' Big Board, Worthy is the 39th overall player in the draft and the eighth overall wide receiver. The Texans have an elite offense, and adding a guy who gets open solely based on his release and speed, like Worthy, makes the offense almost unstoppable. Here are some of his strengths and weaknesses:

STRENGTHS

• Day 1 starter at Texas. Had 981 yards & 12 TDs as a Freshman
• Generational straight-line speed, creates immediate vertical separation
• 4.21 speed puts defenders on their heels at the snap & softens coverage
• Fluid athlete with joystick change-of-direction skills
• Very sudden in & out of breaks. CBs struggle to mirror him at full speed
• Quick & light footwork to attack blindspots
• Good ball-tracking skills, can run underneath a deep post
• Twitchy movements at the LOS to separate laterally & avoid press
• Slippery after the catch. Anticipates the first tackler, comes to balance, & springs in the opposite direction

WEAKNESSES

• Would be one of the smallest WRs to ever play in the NFL
• CBs are consistently able to crowd his catch-space & force incompletions
• Just 15/43 on contested catches for his career
• Very limited catch radius. Struggles to make physical catches over the middle of the field
• Drops have been an issue, but he improved his hands in 2023
• Has to evade contact at the LOS. Unable to power through press coverage
• Unlikely to be a functional run blocker in the NFL
• Had a fumble in each of his three seasons at Texas

The Texans have some important decisions to make, and they will be made the right way, as Caserio has shown us too many times before now. One of those decisions has to be a wide receiver.

DeMeco Ryans reveals what the Texans are looking for in a wide receiver through the draft

The Texans may need to grab another wide out.