The Houston Texans have needs at quarterback, receiver, defensive end, and even center. The names have saturated the consciousness of the average Space City sports fan.
What about the rest of the draft? What about the rest of the roster? There certainly is talent to be had, and the 2023 NFL draft represents and opportunity for the Houston Texans to build for the future, not just complete a rebuild in the first season under new coach DeMeco Ryans.
According to Pete Prisco from CBS Sports, if any team were to consider a cornerback on Day 3, they would be wise to look at LSU’s Jarrick Bernard-Converse.
If teams are looking for a down-the-line corner/safety, Bernard-Converse is that guy. He ran a 4.4 40 at nearly 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds at his pro day, which shows he has the tools. He started 47 games at Oklahoma State in four years before transferring to LSU last season, where he started all 13 games. That’s 60 starts against top-level competition. He played both corner and safety last year, which shows his versatility; in a lean safety class, it might make sense to move him there full-time.
Talks of a hybrid cornerback/safety bring to mind the failure of former 2019 second-rounder Lonnie Johnson, whose career may have been compromised moving between the two spots so frequently.
However, the Texans wouldn’t have to yo-yo Bernard-Converse between cornerback and safety immediately. Houston could get a solid special teams contributor as they let the rest of the secondary play out over the next couple seasons.
He can also help on special teams. There’s a play against Mississippi State where he chased down a kick returner from behind, making up a lot of ground to do so. Bare minimum, a team that drafts him will be getting a good special teams player with a lot of tools to become a contributor in the secondary.
Special teams coordinator Frank Ross can use the former Bayou Bengal right away as Ryans and defensive coordinator Matt Burke determine whether Bernard-Converse would make sense as Steven Nelson or Jimmie Ward’s replacement.
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