The Houston Texans let go of Noah Brown, a very interesting move.
It's fair to be surprised by the release of Noah Brown on Tuesday. The wide receiver looked like he was about to be the team's fourth wide receiver. He was impressive when he played. He found ways to get over the top on secondaries and became a deep threat for C.J. Stroud in 2023. Injuries and a further deepening wide receiver room made it impossible to keep every good-to-great wideout in Houston.
The team was besieged with terrible dilemma after terrible dilemma. After all, how do you cut someone as good as Brown? After the acquisition of Stefon Diggs, turns out you could cut him quite easily. That was just one of the reasons why Brown was deemed expendable. Well, not Brown only but a good portion of the wide receiver room. After all, he wasn't the only name axed.
He was maybe just the most surprising. So why did he get the boot?
John Metchie's potential
Play for play, move for move, I'm taking Noah Brown over John Metchie today. Play for play, move for move in one year? It's hard to not argue for Metchie. The young wideout has gone through hell more than once to make this team and did so with dignity and grace. No one is mad that he made the team, we're just wondering if the decision was the right one. We can't know if it was the right decision until we see him play. If he takes the reigns of the fourth-wide receiver and plays well, we'll know he was the right pick. If not? Well, that's why they kept Robert Woods.
Robert Woods' consistency
Speaking of, Woods made the team because he's consistent. He's not a big play threat but he does do a great job of catching anything and everything his way. He's a great veteran presence and one that should be able to help fill any gaps or holes in the offense if a guy gets hurt. Brown has better big-play potential than Woods, but he lacks the same consistency.
The lowest ceiling and the lowest floor
I like Brown, and I wanted him to make the team. That said, he never felt consistently good enough to warrant a starting job, and his worst play was among the worst in the league. It seemed like he was a high-risk, low-reward option, at least compared to the other candidates for his job. If I'm the Cleveland Browns, Los Angeles Chargers, or other teams in the league, Brown is my third wide receiver. Yet, the Texans' third wide receiver is Tank Dell. A potential breakout star in this league. It's fair to say the level of play expected from that position dramatically increased when Diggs came to town.
