EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first article in a series detailing the history of all 11 Draft Picks the Texans currently own. 245, their seventh-rounder, is below. The next pick is 207th, and will be profiled tomorrow.
The odds are against it happening, but the Texans could find themselves a future Hall of Famer with the 245th overall pick in this year's NFL Draft.
Washington did so back in 1965, when it selected linebacker Chris Hanburger out of North Carolina in the 18th round. There were just 14 teams in the NFL back then, and 20 rounds of the annual Draft.
Because of a 2020 trade with Dallas, Houston's final pick in this year's Draft is the Cowboys' seventh-rounder, which is 245th overall.
Since 1943, 75 players have been picked in that spot, and 37 of them never played a snap in a regular season NFL game. Of the 38 who did, seven wound up starting 32 games or more in their career, while three started 100 games or more.
In a 1965 NFL Draft remembered mainly for Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers going third and fourth overall to the Bears, Hanburger was plucked by Washington and wound up thriving for 14 seasons there. Playing right linebacker, with former Oilers Head Coach Jack Pardee at left linebacker, Hanburger went to nine Pro Bowls and was a five-time member of the AP All-Pro first team. He rang up 45.5 career sacks, picked off 19 passes, recovered 17 fumbles and scored five touchdowns on defense.
He's the most successful player picked at 245, but not the only one who carved out an impressive career. In 1973, Washington selected Ken Stone from Vanderbilt in the 10th round, and the defensive back would spend the next eight seasons with the Redskins, Buccaneers and Cardinals. He wound up with 27 career interceptions, nine of which came in 1978 with Saint Louis. He would appear in 101 career games, with 54 starts.
Hanburger is the only 245th pick to play in more games (187) than former Texans linebacker Danny Clark (168). The Illinois product was chosen in the seventh round of 2000 by Jacksonville, where he spent the first four seasons of his career. After a couple years in Oakland, and a 2006 campaign with the Saints, Clark came to the Texans in 2007 started eight games. He was a Giant in 2008 and 2009, before finishing his career in New Orleans with 10 starts in 2010. When his 11 years in the NFL concluded, Clark had amassed 689 tackles, 49 of which were for a loss.
In the ninth round of the 1978 NFL Draft, the Baltimore Colts took Texas offensive lineman Dave Studdard at 245. The Longhorn never played a down for the Colts, but from 1979 through 1988, he started 133 games at both tackle spots and right guard for the Broncos. Studdard started nine playoff games with Denver, including a pair of Super Bowls. His son Kasey wound up as a Texans offensive lineman from 2007 through 2010.
Last year's 245th pick was Tre Norwood, an Oklahoma Sooner defensive back chosen by the Steelers. He played in all 17 games last season, with three starts. Norwood picked off a pass and registered 38 tackles as a rookie.
The Texans currently own 11 selections in the 2022 NFL Draft, which begins April 28 in Las Vegas.
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