Texans' Owner Wants 'Good Young' QB in Draft, but 2016 Poses Limited Options

The Houston Texans are in quarterback limbo. 

The team desperately needs to upgrade at the game's most important position but may not be in position to acquire a legitimate veteran or top-notch prospect this offseason. 

When an NFL owner speaks publicly about a team's quarterback situation like the Texans' Bob McNair did Tuesday, there are clearly issues that can't be overlooked. 

Of course, this shouldn't come as any surprise after Brian Hoyer's performance in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. 

The 30-year-old signal-caller fell apart in his first playoff appearance, completing only 44 percent of his passes and tossing four interceptions in the Texans' 30-0 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. He became the first quarterback to throw for no touchdowns and four interceptions since Brad Johnson did the same with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2001, according to ESPN. 

Acquiring a quarterback this offseason remains the Texans' No. 1 priority, McNair said, per the Houston Chronicle's John McClain: 

"

I don’t think there’s any question. I’ve been saying that. The question is what’s available, and what’s the price? How many draft picks might you have to give up? You can’t undermine the rest of your team while you’re trying to get a quarterback.

This isn’t a department store where they have them on the shelf, and you just pick one up. It’s a question of who’s available. We’re working on that. We think there are some good prospects out there.

"

"Prospects" is the key term and a primary reason the Texans shouldn't be so quick to move on from Hoyer this offseason. 

"We'll probably want a veteran to work with a young guy," McNair said, per the Houston Chronicle's Aaron Wilson. "Brian did a lot of good things this year."

Did Hoyer fail when the team needed him to rise to the occasion? Absolutely. But the organization shouldn't overlook that he set career highs as a starter with a 60.7 completion percentage and 19 touchdowns.

"I've dealt with a lot of adversity," Hoyer said after Saturday's performance. "This might be one of the worst parts of my career."

The difference today compared to 10 months ago, when general manager Rick Smith signed Hoyer to a two-year, $10.5 million contract, is the organization knows he can be effective in stretches but is not starter material. 

Sure, Hoyer remains ultra-competitive. After all, he apprenticed at Tom Brady's School of High Expectations. But he never displayed the necessary physical attributes to be deemed a franchise quarterback with the Cleveland Browns or Texans. 

He's still a quality person to have in the locker room and in quarterback meetings. He's also accountable and an extra set of eyes for head coach Bill O'Brien due to his knowledge of the system. 

However, Hoyer didn't exactly relish the role of mentor in Cleveland or Houston. 

"I've been in quarterback rooms where it's every man for himself," Ryan Mallett said after being released by the Texans and signing with the Baltimore Ravens, per ESPN.com's Tania Ganguli. "[Matt Schaub and Jimmy Clausen] didn't have to be as helpful. You hear things are different in Baltimore, and I was seeing it."

Mallett didn't specify who he was talking about, but it's easy to guess it's Hoyer, since the two played together with the Texans and the New England Patriots. 

Due to his recent meltdown, Hoyer surely came to the conclusion that he won't go into next season as the Texans' (or any team's) starter. This could allow him to be more proactive if and when the team adds a young quarterback to the mix. 

Drafting a signal-caller in this year's class is the most logical solution to the team's problems. 

The top two options potentially available on the free-agent market, the Washington Redskins' Kirk Cousins and Denver Broncos' Brock Osweiler, will almost certainly be re-signed by their current teams. The Philadelphia Eagles also have a decision to make about Sam Bradford, but he finished this past season with three straight 300-yard games and remains the organization's best option behind center. 

Beyond those three, the top free-agent options include: Scott Tolzien, Chase Daniel, Chad Henne and Matt Cassel. 

It's not exactly an inspiring bunch. Case Keenum, Matt Schaub and Ryan Fitzpatrick are slated to become free agents as well, but let's just (safely) assume the Texans are still suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder due to those experiences. 

Now, a damaged trio could hit the market and prove to be interesting options. 

Robert Griffin III, Colin Kaepernick and Johnny Manziel wore out their welcomes with their respective franchises. All three could be moved or released this offseason. 

Stephan Savoia/Associated Press

While each presents plenty of natural talent and room to grow, none of them are ideal fits in O'Brien's scheme. Considering they're legit dual-threat quarterbacks, the Texans' vision of finding the next Brady won't mesh with signal-callers who struggle to consistently win from the pocket. 

Could O'Brien adapt and use these quarterbacks? It's always a possibility, but far from the ideal option. 

Instead, the team's most likely path to upgrade the game's most important position will come in April when the Texans have the 22nd pick in the draft.

It's not where you want to select a quarterback, though the Browns chose Manziel at the same point in the draft two years ago and passed on rising stars Teddy Bridgewater and Derek Carr. The Texans also made a mistake passing on David Carr's little brother with the first pick in the second round, which led to the organization's current predicament. 

"I was told that Derek Carr was an absolute non-starter as a draft pick for the Texans, and that's a full franchise failure," Yahoo Sports' Charles Robinson said, via NFL.com's Lance Zierlein. 

The Texans eventually chose Tom Savage in the fourth round with the 135th overall pick. That Savage isn't in this conversation exemplifies the miscalculation the team made in assessing the quarterback position upon O'Brien's arrival. 

But the team should have another opportunity this year.

With the Texans selecting in the latter half of the first round, it's easy to assume the top quarterback—whoever that is—will be off the board. At least four quarterback-starved teams—the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, St. Louis Rams and New York Jets—are slated to select before the Texans.

However, Cal's Jared Goff, Memphis' Paxton Lynch and North Dakota State's Carson Wentz are all solid bets to become first-round selections.  

If those three are gone by the time Houston is up, the Texans will have limited options with the 22nd overall pick and beyond. 

Michigan State's Connor Cook is an intriguing option due to his experience as a starter in what's considered a pro-style offense. But like his fellow Michigan State alumnus, Cook played terribly in the playoffs this year.

Against the eventual national champions, the Alabama Crimson Tide, Cook completed 48.7 percent of his passes and threw a pair of interceptions. He simply couldn't elevate the play of those around him at the most crucial point in the season. 

However, he should still be a viable option in the second round. The Michigan State quarterback is a three-year starter with a 71-22 touchdown-to-interception ratio over his career. The Spartans coaching staff eventually morphed from a run-heavy scheme into a spread offense to capitalize on the quarterback's natural ability. 

Cook's accuracy remains a concern, but he's a legitimate option beyond the first round. 

Gene J Puskar/Associated Press

Then there's Penn State's Christian Hackenberg, whose name will come up most often between now and the draft. 

O'Brien recruited the young quarterback to the State College. 

Entering this season, many considered the Penn State quarterback a legit first-round talent despite a down sophomore campaign after O'Brien left his position as Nittany Lions head coach. However, Hackenberg's free fall continued into his junior season, when he completed only 53.5 percent of his passes. He also threw more touchdowns during his true freshman campaign (20) than in either of the following two seasons.

Many chalk this up to a poor fit with current head coach James Franklin. When the quarterback declared as an early entrant for the draft, he thanked O'Brien in his statement but not Franklin.

Hackenberg wasn't a good fit in Franklin's system, which emphasizes more spread principles compared to O'Brien's pro scheme. As a former No. 1 overall recruit, Hackenberg chose to attend Penn State based on the offense O'Brien brought to the university, and he struggled outside of those quarterback-friendly confines. 

Player	Comp.%	Yards	TDS	INTs
Hoyer	60.7	2,606	19	7
Mallett	53.1	770	3	4
Yates	49.1	370	3	1
Weeden	61.9	305	3	0

The two could reunite in Houston, and O'Brien could develop a prospect who once displayed No. 1-overall potential during their one season together. With that allure, the Texans could even consider Hackenberg in the first round. 

Beyond those aforementioned quarterbacks, the rest of the QB crop are developmental prospects. 

Mississippi State's Dak Prescott, North Carolina State's Jacoby Brissett, Stanford's Kevin Hogan, Western Kentucky's Brandon Doughty, Arkansas' Brandon Allen, USC's Cody Kessler, Alabama' Jacob Coker and Ohio State's Cardale Jones should be considered draftable prospects, but they're not instant solutions to Houston's primary problem. 

The Texans need a quarterback who can step in next year, take over the offense and lead the team. They don't have a legitimate option on the roster, free agency can be a crapshoot and the team's draft positioning is less than favorable to acquire a top prospect.

Houston, which captured the AFC South crown but bowed out in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs, is stuck in a position where it's good but not good enough to be considered a legitimate Super Bowl contender and not bad enough to get a high pick to select a top quarterback prospect. 

That means the team must approach the draft aggressively, and O'Brien has to be ready to develop a prospect who isn't considered elite. Without a quality quarterback, Houston probably won't get any further than it did this season.

It's a vicious cycle, but it's still quarterback-or-bust for the Texans.

Brent Sobleski covers the NFL and NFL draft for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @brentsobleski.