The challenge facing general manager Nick Caserio is to build the Houston Texans into a team that can stack wins on the field while at the same developing a culture that is self-sustaining.
Going back to Caserio’s first draft in 2021, the Texans targeted players who would foment competition at their position and would follow the lead of effective veterans.
The strategy was necessary given Houston’s dearth of draft picks in the top-100, not picking until Round 3 at No. 67 overall. However, the Texans have five picks in the top-100 in 2022 with twin first-rounders for the first time since 2004.
Houston’s run game has been in desperate need of an upgrade since Carlos Hyde’s 1,000-yard season in 2019. If the Texans are looking to add a running back in the draft who can produce on the field and ultimately become a leader in the locker room, then former Iowa State running back Breece Hall needs to be considered.
Hall spent time with Jacob Infante from the Draft Wire to talk about the draft process, and revealed how playing for Iowa State helped mold him as a leader of the offense.
Since the day I got there, they have the highest expectations of me. Coach [Matt] Campbell, he might not say, but his favorite position is running back. So just from the day I got there, he was pushing me to be the best he knew I could be. In my time there, I was always expected to [play well]. I knew I was the best player on the team, so I was expected to be that same guy, day in and day out, on and off the field, be a great person and a great leader and a great football player. I feel like that made me a better person and player.
Hall knows how to shoulder high expectations and perform, which is what the Texans need. Hall had a comprehension that he was the Cyclones’ best offensive player and understood how to carry himself consistently.
Hall if expected to go in the second and third rounds, which would be decent value for Houston to invest in a running back.
