2018 Fantasy Football Rookie Roundup: Houston Texans

Finally, we come to the AFC South and the Houston Texans. The Texans had the most eye-popping five-game stretch of any team last season as Deshaun Watson set the league on fire. Of course, this was before he tore his ACL at practice, and was never seen again. They added three players at fantasy football positions through the draft. The only question remains: should you care?

Jordan Akins, Tight End, Round Three
The 98th pick on the NFL draft plays the position least likely to have an impact in a rookie season. However, Akins has enough raw athleticism and speed that he could potentially make it work. He’s a tight end in name only, as his blocking is atrocious. However, that won’t be a problem, as this is the same offense that made C.J. Fiedorowicz fantasy football relevant for nearly a whole season. With Akins, the book is “deceptive speed” in a big ol’ frame and not much else. He’s not as physical as you would want, and at 26, he probably went to UCF on a Civil War G.I. Bill.

Will he be relevant in 2018? That all depends on how you define relevant. He will probably pop a couple times given his size and speed, but it’s unlikely he’s worth rostering. He’ll more than likely be useful to Deshaun Watson, not your fantasy football leagues. Just remember his name for 2019 if he shows some promise this year.

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Keke Coutee, Wide Receiver, Round Four
If there’s one Texans rookie who has a chance to be fantasy football relevant in 2018, it’s Keke Coutee. Due to his mountains of smooth speed and open field wiggle, he can turn short throws into long, long gains. He seems to always be open in zone coverage, and he can freaking fly. However, he can easily get bounced off routes if he’s pressed at the line and that he doesn’t have a huge ability to fight for contested catches. Therefore, if the Texans can get him schemed into space, then he can produce.

Still, Coutee is slippery as heck and has the ability to turn any pass into a touchdown (not unlike his teammate, Will Fuller). Above all, he has a clear path to getting a part of the Houston passing game pie, as he has to beat Braxton Miller and professional never-breaking-out-future-breakout-candidate Bruce Ellington. He’s a decent deep league flier, and someone to keep on your radar in shallower leagues. He could be the guy we hope Will Fuller should be.

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Jordan Thomas, Tight End, Round Six
Thomas is a pure developmental pick for 2018. He’s extremely unrefined at the game of football but is a monster freak athlete. A former basketball player, he’s huge and fast and not great at football. Just leave him be, he doesn’t need this attention! He had a 2:28 highlight reel that was four or five pretty good plays and a twenty-two-second intro frame. Just forget about him unless he gets his skills together.

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For more great AFC South rookie roundups, check out these:

2018 Tennessee Titans Rookie Roundup

2018 Indianapolis Colts Rookie Roundup

2018 Jacksonville Jaguars Rookie Roundup

About Jeff Krisko

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