Texans' Perfect Match in Free Agency Revealed

With NFL free agency opening across the league next week, the questions are increasingly piling up wondering how the Houston Texans will approach the next critical portion of the offseason.

The Texans don't have a ton of wiggle room financially to make multiple splash signings, and following their acquisition of wide receiver Christian Kirk from the Jacksonville Jaguars who holds a $15 million-plus cap hit, Houston has to be even more diligent about how they spend their limited funds.

However, there still lies immense opportunity for an impact player to come aboard the roster in the right fit, which could inevitably land on the offensive line.

In the eyes of Pro Football Focus analyst Bradley Locker, the perfect fit for the Texans in free agency might be Detroit Lions guard Kevin Zeitler in hopes of ironing out their concerns upfront.

"The Texans will probably need to acquire interior (and even perimeter) offensive linemen through multiple avenues this offseason," Locker wrote. "Signing arguably the best available guard [in Zeitler] would go a long way toward bettering the spine of the team."

When drawing out the ideal connection between Zeitler and the Texans, Locker sees his versatility in both run blocking and pass protection as worthwhile upgrades to the interior of Houston's offensive line.

"Houston finished last year ranked 25th in team PFF run-blocking grade, but Zeitler’s 87.2 PFF run-blocking mark was the second best among qualified guards," Locker wrote. "He was also effective in pass blocking to the tune of a 97.9 PFF pass-blocking efficiency score, including a 96.4 mark on true pass sets... Zeitler doesn’t necessarily boast explicit connections to new offensive coordinator Nick Caley, but with Joe Mixon still under contract and Houston aiming to run the ball better last year, it would be hard to do better than the soon-to-be 35-year-old."

It's hard to argue against the appeal of Zeitler. For the right price, he's an experienced and effective option on the interior who can be a major asset in helping C.J. Stroud get back on his feet for year three, as well as getting the gears of the run game turning better than last season as well.

Zeitler, while far from a long-term option at 35 years old, brings what's necessary to the Texans for the season ahead as a temporary bandage to the interior. Putting together a pitch to pull him away from a good and familiar situation with Detroit could be much easier said than done. Yet, if Houston could manage to put pen to paper, the long-time league veteran be a stellar addition to this offensive unit.

Free agency negotiations open across the league at noon ET on Monday, March 10th.

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