After the Houston Texans traded away starting left tackle Laremy Tunsil and left guard Kenyon Green, Nick Caserio has once again taken a huge risk when to comes to finding the right combination of players to block for pocket passing franchise quarterback CJ Stroud.
Houston has 2023 second-round pick Juice Scruggs on the roster, but it doesn't seem like DeMeco Ryans is willing to hand him the starting right guard spot immediately. As a result, the Texans swung another trade for a player very few could have forseen as a possible option for them.
The Texans have acquired guard Ed Ingram from the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for a 2026 sixth-round pick. This trade comes just a few days after signing veteran Laken Tomlinson. While the Week 1 offensive line is far from set in stone, Ingram may end up as the starting right guard when it is all said and done.
Texans acquire OG Ed Ingram from Vikings in trade
Ingram graded out as the 100th best guard in the league out of 135 qualified players in the eyes of Pro Football Focus. Ingram, who was replaced when the Vikings gave former Colts guard Will Fries a five-year contract, may need to reinvent himself in Houston.
Ingram, who struggled in a Sean McVay-adjacent offense with Kevin O'Connell's Vikings, will get another shot in that scheme with Caley. Ingram will likely be competing with Scruggs for the starting right guard job, though it is unclear which of the two would have an edge in that race if it had to be decided today.
Between this and the Tomlinson signing, the Texans seem to be better on veterans who can thrive within their very specific offensive scheme. While there is reason to be optimistic, the lows both Tomlinson and Ingram had during the 2024 seasons paint a very bleak picture of what the worst-case scenario looks like for this line.
Ingram had better finally reach the heights Minnesota thought he would when they used a second-round pick on him in 2022. After losing his starting job last season, the Texans need to put him through a rigorous process to milk the most potential out of him.
