The Houston Texans are a team that desperately needs an upgrade at the quarterback position. The team somehow made the playoffs last season despite starting Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallett, T.J. Yates and Brandon Weeden during the regular season. If they had a quality starter, they could be a legitimate contender in the AFC, and the team should look into adding Sam Bradford to help their cause.
Bradford was significantly better than primary starter Hoyer for most of 2015. Bradford had the most accurate season of his career completing 65 percent of his passes. He displayed great poise in the pocket and started to live up to some of the expectations that come along with being a No. 1 overall draft pick. Granted, he was only slightly above average, but that is still much better than what the Texans currently have at the position.
In fact, Bradford may have been able to do something Hoyer was unable to do: Lead the team to a playoff victory. Despite playing relatively well in the regular season, Hoyer was absolutely atrocious in their playoff loss. He put together one of the worst quarterbacking displays of all time. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes, threw four interceptions and was unable to lead the Texans to any points in the loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. It was hard to watch, and it proved that Hoyer is nothing more than a backup-caliber player.
The rest of the passers the Texans used during the season were not special either. Mallett was cut for missing a flight after losing his starting job. Meanwhile, Yates and Weeden were signed off the street midway through the year to compensate for the team’s lack of talent and depth at the position. Adding Bradford would eliminate that problem and give the team a consistent option, provided that he can stay healthy.
Of course, the Texans could also opt to add a young quarterback in the draft, but there is a good chance that they will not be able to land one of the top prospects. They will probably be in position to add a player like Christian Hackenberg in the second round. Still, no matter who they add they will have to sit a year or two before starting. That is where Bradford will come in. He can start for the next couple of years and if he does not work out, then the team can move on in the coming years.
It just makes sense for the Texans to look into adding Bradford, and it would likely be mutually beneficial, as Bradford will be looking to start for a potential playoff-bound team. If the two parties can work out a three-year deal, that would probably be in their best interests.
