The Texans' tight ends made a number of memorable plays in the 2023 season. Even though every single tight end/fullback missed at least one game, and a couple of key guys missed the majority of the season or the entire season, this group still consistently produced.
When Dalton Schultz re-signed with the Texans and they drafted underrated Ohio State star Cade Stover, it took the Texans' tight end position from good to "how good COULD this group be in 2024?"
With training camp just around the corner, let's dive into this tight end/fullback group and how the diversity in this unit could/should peel back another layer of this offensive onion.
Tight ends & Fullbacks (numerical order)
9 Brevin Jordan
4th year in Houston
2021 5th round selection
2023 Stats - 14 games, 17 receptions for 219 yards and two TD
- Scored longest playoff touchdown in Texans history
For many people, a 76-yard TD in the NFL playoffs would be a conversation starter, a talking point for a decade or forever, whichever came first. So this offseason, when I asked Jordan about his catch-and-sprint TD against the Browns, he took maybe ten to 20 seconds to discuss what he saw, felt and experienced. Then, he said "you know what, John, I don't even want to talk about that play anymore".
He said it as nicely as possible, but his point was that he had a ton more to do in 2024 and beyond. He's primed, if/when healthy, to have another important season, his biggest to date. He seemed to really find his place in this offense last year and it's time to take that to a different level.
34 Troy Hairston
3rd year in Houston
2022 UDFA
*Missed all of 2023 with an injury.
Early in 2023 Training Camp, Hairston took a hit while catching a pass and he went down immediately. That was his last play of 2023 and he went on the injured reserve for the entirety of the season. I was more curious about Hairston in this offense than most because I wanted to see what kind of fit he was going to be. But the injury squelched his season. So he had a year to get comfortable mentally with this offense and he's got to find his fit in it. He's a hammerhead lead blocker and he's going to leave a physical impression during preseason games for sure.
40 Dalton Keene
3rd year in the NFL - 2nd year in Houston
2023 FA signing
2023 Stats - one game, no stats
Keene didn't get a ton of time on the field in 2023 as he spent most of the year on the practice squad. He's got a bit more of a tight end's game than fullback, but he can play either of the two positions. He'll get plenty of time during the preseason to show that he can master each of the two spots and prove his value in this offense and on special teams.
47 Andrew Beck
6th year - 2nd year in Houston
2023 FA Signing
2023 Stats - 15 games, 11 receptions for 55 yards and two TD; five rush attempts for three yards and one TD, one 85-yard kickoff return TD.
- Biggest (heaviest, largest?) player to ever have a kickoff return TD in the history of the NFL. That sounds mean, but it's true.
When Beck signed in 2023, I thought he would be an effective Swiss Army Knife who could help the Texans in a number of different ways. It went even better than I expected.
Beck's kickoff return for a TD at Jacksonville might have been the most important play of the 2023 season. He was the only Texan to score in three different ways - rushing TD, receiving TD and kickoff TD. As we head into 2024, Beck can play the same role for this squad, leading the way for new starting running back Joe Mixon in the ground game, and providing an outlet for quarterback C.J. Stroud in the passing game.
Indispensable player for this roster.
84 Teagan Quitoriano
3rd year in Houston
2022 5th round selection
2023 Stats - seven games, two receptions for 33 yards
Let me repeat, Teagan has to just…stay…healthy.
TQ has only been able to play a combined 16 games in his two seasons in Houston. He missed ten games and the playoffs in 2023 and that changed things for the TE position, especially at the Y-inline spot. He's talented. He's strong. He's physical. But he just hasn't played enough football consistently to stack one good day after another. He's probably sick of hearing about the injuries but until he can stack days into great weeks, it'll be something TQ will have to answer. However, when he's healthy, there's something here.
86 Dalton Schultz
7th year in the NFL - 2nd year in Houston
2023 FA signing, 2024 re-signed with contract extension
2023 Stats - 15 games, 59 receptions for 635 yards and five TD
- Only one Texans TE has ever had more receptions in a single season (Owen Daniels)
- 12th in TE in the NFL receiving yardage in 2023 (635)
- Tied for 12th in TE in the NFL in receptions in 2023 (59)
When the offseason hit, there were nearly three dozen Texans unrestricted free agents, Schultz being one of those. He ended the drama early in the offseason, signing a contract extension with the Texans to stay for the next three seasons. I remember thinking that his signing boded well for this offense, and this organization, because it made a statement about what a player, with just one year's time in Houston, felt about what was being built here. Throughout the 2023 season, Schultz was clutch. The TD late in the 4th in Atlanta. The fourth down TD v. Tampa Bay in the 4th quarter. Third down catch for a first down at Cincinnati on the final drive. The one-handed grab/snatch at Tennessee in Week 15. Suffice to say, he's the right piece in this offense at the right time in his career.
87 Cade Stover
Rookie
2024 4th round selection
2023 Stats (Ohio State) - 12 games, 41 receptions for 576 yards, five TD
I can't tell you how many Texans fans approached me about the Texans drafting a tight end during the draft process. They eventually provided me with a ton of different names that didn't really interest me all that much.
Stover, though? HE interested ME a ton and I can't tell you how excited I was when his name was called on Saturday of the Draft.
Stover can play all three different tight end spots, could play fullback, if forced to do so. He has soft hands and a masher's run blocking spirit. He played outside linebacker for the Buckeyes in the 2022 Rose Bowl and then moved over to tight end for C.J. Stroud's final year with the Buckeyes. Stover flashed a ton of progress during OTA/minicamps, catching nearly everything thrown his way. I have a feeling that if he can stay healthy, he's going to make an impact on this team, and Texans' fans will love him.
