The trade market could benefit the Texans. Composite Getty Image.
It was a busy day in the NFL on Tuesday, as teams had to make their final decisions on whether to use the franchise tag. The Houston Texans opted not to use the tag, but did agree to a 3-year, $36 million contract extension with tight end Dalton Schultz.
Which means several of the team's top defenders will hit the market in free agency, unless they are able to get a deal done by Wednesday, March 13 before 4PM/ET. DE Jonathan Greenard, CB Steven Nelson, and LB Blake Cashman will be coveted by other teams, and certainly missed if the Texans are unable to bring them back.
Corners Tavierre Thomas, and Desmond King are also set to be free agents. Meaning, Derek Stingley is the only legitimate corner currently on the roster. And as good as he was last season, he has missed 14 games in his two-year career.
The Kansas City Chiefs also had some tough choices to make this week, choosing to use the franchise tag on their elite corner Ladarius Snead. Which means defensive lineman Chris Jones will be a highly sought after free agent when the legal tampering period begins on Monday.
What's interesting about Snead is the Chiefs are reportedly willing to trade him if they can't sign him to a long-term contract. Bleacher Report recently published an article naming seven teams that should pursue Snead on the trade market, with Houston being one of those teams.
Which makes a ton of sense considering the Texans are short-handed at corner and have a ton of cap space even after the Schultz and Ka'imi Fairbairn (3-year, $15.9 million) contracts.
And cap space they will need because Snead will carry a 2024 cap hit of $19.8 million if he remains on the franchise tag. Of course, the goal would be to sign him to an extension. But even when they do that, he'll command a salary of around $20 million per year.
Which is what teams should expect to pay for an elite corner that's in the prime of his career.
How much will the Texans have to give up in a trade?
Via: Bleacher Report:
In a vacuum, Sneed is probably worth a first-round draft pick. That may be where Kansas City starts its negotiations.
Although Sneed has never been named to the Pro Bowl, he was easily one of the NFL's top cover corners in 2023. The 27-year-old allowed an opposing passer rating of only 56.2 in coverage, and he didn't allow a single touchdown during the regular season despite being targeted 100 times.
A first round pick feels a little sporty if the Texans are going to have to pay him a top of the market corner salary. In the video below, they reference an article from Texans Wire that addresses the compensation. Would Kansas City be willing to take a second-round pick? Or perhaps the Chiefs (No. 32) swap first-round picks with Houston (No. 23), and the Texans throw in a third-rounder to get the deal done.
It may sound like a lot, but this would arguably give the Texans the best corner duo in the NFL. And keep in mind, the Texans are going to have to attack this position one way or another with only Stingley in the fold currently.
They could do a blockbuster trade for Snead that would cost them draft picks and a salary of around $20 a year.
Or, they could go after a soon-to-be free agent like Steven Nelson, that would cost around half that.
The draft is another way they could go, which means you're surrendering a first or second round pick for a prospect that may or may not pan out.
Whichever way they choose to proceed, they have to add two starting-caliber corners to the roster.
Be sure to check out the video above for all the pros and cons of pulling off a blockbuster trade for Snead.
It’s time to get real about Astros rotation, Verlander, and Houston’s battery of dominant arms
Sep 10, 2024, 3:09 pm
With only 19 games left in the regular season for the Astros, time is running out for Justin Verlander to justify a spot in the club's playoff rotation.
At best, he'll start another three games, with two of them likely against the lowly Angels. Not exactly a team similar to what Houston will face if they indeed make the postseason.
But at this point, Verlander needs to pass the eye-test before we even worry about the level of competition he'll be facing. JV's command is a huge issue. He's wild in the strike zone with his fastball, and also having trouble throwing his secondary pitches for strikes.
As much as we can blame some of his struggles on bad luck after returning from injury, his ERA for the season is over FIVE.
And more importantly, the Astros have better options to turn to when the playoffs begin. Naming the Astros No. 1 and No. 2 starters in the postseason is a no-brainer. Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown. So, at best, Verlander would be named the third or fourth starter, should they need one.
As of today, we just don't know how many games the Astros will play in their first playoff series. And we don't know how the rest of the rotation will pitch down the stretch. If the season were to end today, they would play a three-game series. So we'll discuss the top three starters for the time being.
Matchup over pitcher?
The Astros may choose to play the matchup when deciding on their Game 3 starter. If their opponent has trouble against lefties, that might influence the 'Stros to start Yusei Kikuchi. Which means the opposite could be true. Houston may go with Spencer Arrighetti, Ronel Blanco, or Verlander against an opponent that struggles against right-handed pitchers.
Here's one more factor to consider. If the Astros find themselves in a three-game series in a win-or-go-home situation in Game 3, would anyone feel good about Verlander starting that game?
If JV isn't dominant over his remaining starts, there's no way he should get the nod over Arrighetti, Blanco, and Kikuchi. Despite his Hall of Fame resume.
This is one video you don't want to miss as we have an in-depth conversation about the Verlander conundrum the Astros are facing, and much more!
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
