Brandt: Patriots and Texans potential trade partners for Ryan Mallett
With the Houston Texans hiring of Bill O’Brien much of the talk has been which quarterback O’Brien and the Texans would draft with the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NFL draft.
With Teddy Bridgewater leaving the Louisville Cardinals, UCF’s Blake Bortles entering his name in the draft and the anticipated declaration of former Heisman winner Johnny Manziel, there will be some intriguing candidates for the Texans to choose from.
However, the Texans may not even draft a quarterback according to Gil Brandt who suggests a trade could be a possibility.
O'Brien likes big QBs. I could see #Texans trying to trade w #Patriots for Ryan Mallett, going diff direction in draft
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) January 6, 2014
The 6-6 Mallett has yet to appear in a regular season for the New England Patriots who drafted him out of Arkansas in the third round in 2011. O’Brien was on the Patriots staff when Mallett was drafted and even though he left for the Penn State job shortly thereafter, he is familiar with the big pocket passer.
Could the Texans trade a second round pick for Mallett and use the top pick on Jadeveon Clowney or trade down to acquire more picks?
Adding a player with pro experience to a veteran team could expedite the Texans rebuilding effort and get back into the postseason.