The Houston Texans had a disappointing 2024 season despite making it as far as they did last year. Houston finished the regular season 10-7 and won the AFC South division title for the second consecutive season. The Texans defeated the Chargers during the Wild Card round, but barely lost to the mighty Chiefs one week later.

In many respects, the Texans are still headed in the right direction after getting back to the Divisional Round playoffs. However, considering how many players the Texans added last offseason, the team fell fell well short of their elevated expectations.

Now the Texans must transition into offseason mode and find a way to reload the roster. Unfortunately, that will be difficult considering how little the Texans have to work with. Houston is just about at the salary cap heading into the offseason, meaning they’ll already need to make some adjustments just to add new players. There is certainly a way out, but it does limit Houston’s options.

If the Texans restructure the contracts of Laremy Tunsil, Tytus Howard, and Shaquille Mason, they can create enough cap space to get some moves done.

Houston will still be able to make a couple of big additions this offseason, but they have basically no path to landing a top free agent. Instead, the Texans must focus their efforts on the 2025 NFL Draft. They could also look into a few trades for low-salary players who could upgrade the roster right away.

Below we will explore two of the best players that the Texans could realistically trade for during the 2025 NFL offseason.

Texans pull off blockbuster trade that reunites Garrett Wilson and CJ Stroud

First, the trade terms.

Texans receive: 

• WR Garrett Wilson
• 2025 third-round pick (from Lions)

Jets receive: 

• QB Davis Mills
• 2025 first-round pick (25th overall)

Both Wilson and Stroud would be thrilled if this trade actually happened.

The pair played together for one season at Ohio State and developed a deep bond. Stroud and Wilson connected on 70 receptions for 1,068 yards and 12 touchdowns during that 2021 season.

Now Wilson could be the perfect addition to a Texans offense that already boasts a handful of weapons. The trio of Wilson, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell could cause a ton of issues for opposing defenses.

Houston would not like giving up a first-round pick. However, the price is absolutely worth it for a wide receiver that already has a rapport with your franchise quarterback.

As for the Jets, they are entering another rebuild. Aaron Glenn and GM Darren Mougey have a lot of work to do fixing the Jets. Wilson is a player that would be nice to keep, but he is on the final year of his rookie contract. New York would have to pay Wilson to keep him around, which is arguably not the best move. Wilson might also have an issue signing up for a complete rebuild when he does not know who his QB will be in the fall.

Adding a first-round pick would be a great start to New York’s rebuild.

The Texans can throw in backup QB Davis Mills as a sweetener to get this deal done. He could be a bridge option for the Jets if they are unable to add a different QB this offseason.

The Texans could kick the tires on Mazi Smith as interior d-line depth

First, the trade terms.

Texans receive: 

• DT Mazi Smith
• 2026 seventh-round pick swap

Cowboys receive: 

• G Kenyon Green
• 2026 seventh-round pick swap

This trade is certainly not as sexy as the Garrett Wilson option.

There is not a ton to explain about this potential trade. Both teams have a former first-round pick who has not lived up to expectations. The Texans have a need on the interior of their defensive line, and the Cowboys could use another guard.

Green is currently a backup for Houston, so it would not hurt at all to trade him away. If the Texans can replace him with an equally-valued player at a position of need, that should be considered a win.

Neither of these additions are particularly exciting for either team. However, this move does make both teams better and basically costs each team nothing at all.

The Texans should also have some faith in their coaching staff to get the most out of Mazi Smith.

I included a pick swap in this trade to sweeten the deal for both sides. Both teams can easily look at that part of the trade as a win, so long as they assume they can play better than the other in 2025. But as a seventh-round pick, it ultimately amounts to nothing.