Another move on a busy Saturday afternoon for the Houston Texans. They moved on for Jadeveon Clowney, and have now added more tools to help them this season. This article will be a breakdown of the trade, and how it benefits each team.

The Trade Details:
Trade 1
Houston Texans receive: Laremy Tunsil, Offensive Tackle & Kenny Stills, Wide Receiver & Fourth Round Pick

Miami Dolphins receive: Julie’n Davenport, Offensive Tackle & Johnson Bademosi, Special Teams Player & Two future first round picks & Future second round pick

Trade 2
Houston Texans receive: Carlos Hyde, Running Back

Kansas City Chiefs: Martinas Rankin, Offensive Lineman

Reaction, Analysis, and Grades:

Houston Texans:
The Texans obviously were not done willing and dealing on this Saturday afternoon. A few hours removed from trading Jadeveon Clowney, they make another shocking move. They have addressed multiple needs to their offense in adding offensive line help, adding a running back, and another playmaker. Laremy Tunsil is former 13th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. Tunsil entered the draft seeming to be a future multiple time pro bowl franchise left tackle. Tunsil is graded as an elite left tackle according to Pro Football Focus. Tunsil is an above average pass blocker, and somewhat average in terms of run blocking. He is a definite upgrade over the current offensive situation for the Texans, and will instantly improve that units productions. DeShaun Watson is a special quarterback, but has been hit way too much for the Texans liking in his young career. Tunsil is a plug and play tackle who they can use to protect the blindside for years to come. Laremy will be a free agent at seasons end, but it seems like a long term deal will be hammered out at some point. The Texans added some help in the draft in Tytus Howard and Max Scharping, but both of these players are projects. Tunsil gives them a tackle that is ready to contribute right away. Kenny Stills gives the Texans another slot receiver type to add some speed to their lineup. The Texans have DeAndre Hopkins, Will Fuller, and Keke Coutee, but Hopkins is the only receiver that has been able to stay healthy. Stills is a proven veteran with a knack for making big plays in the open field. He also has a nose for the end zone, and has 32 career touchdowns. Stills gives Watson another option to work with, and will help take some of the focus off of DeAndre Hopkins. In a separate deal with the Chiefs, the Texans also added some running back depth in Carlos Hyde. Hyde is a former Ohio State Buckeye, that has had a hard time finding a consistent home since leaving the San Francisco 49ers. Hyde is a power back with the ability to push the pile in short yardage situations. He has also shown ability to be a solid receiver out of the backfield in the past. Hyde’s numbers are down compared to the San Francisco days, but has been stuck in a backup role. With Houston, he will be given more opportunities, and should be the lead back going forward. The Texans gave up a lot of assets, but this team feels they can win now and had to make these moves. I know DeShaun Watson will appreciate these attempts to bolster the team.

Grade:
Trade 1: B
Trade 2: B+

Miami Dolphins:
The Dolphins have decided to go full tank mode by trading away their current assets for future picks. This move shows me they weren’t willing to commit to Tunsil or Stills long term. They flip these players into future picks in the coming years to rebuild Brian Flores team. The Dolphins have now added four future draft picks, and four future second round picks in the next two years. This is quite a haul for a team that is going nowhere fast, and now they will be pressured to make the right selections in the draft. Honestly, even with Tunsil and Stills the Dolphins were still likely headed to the top of the draft. Losing these players will hurt them this year, but for a team not in contention that won’t bother them too much. This will also open up the cap space for them in the future so they have the ability to add young talent, and potentially spend some money to fast track the rebuild. This is quite a shocking deal that occurred right before the 2019 season starts, but the success of this trade hinges on their drafting ability. This is a hard trade to grade because we do not know the results or who the future picks will be. For the time being, I feel this is a smart move by the Dolphins to make the most of their expiring assets. As far as the players they received, they are simply adding depth to their roster. Julie’n Davenport can play the tackle position for the time being. He is a former 4th round pick, and is only 24 years old with room to grow. He is a raw athlete with some upside, but has to improve on his mechanics. However, with steady playing time we could see him develop into a cheap short term option for Miami. Johnson Bademosi is a utility special teams player that can do multiple things. He can help with kickoff and punt coverage, and give the Dolphins a high energy player for the special teams unit.

Grade: B

Kansas City Chiefs:
Martinas Rankin is a young project out of Mississippi State that will be used as a depth piece for the Chiefs O-Line unit. Andy Reid has a knack for turning young talent into promising contributors. I don’t expect Rankin to play right away, but once he learns the system he can contribute in the future. At the very least, he gives the Chiefs a insurance policy in case of injury. This is a smart pickup of a young player, and they only gave up a running back that did not fit their system.

Grade: B

Final Thoughts:
The Chiefs were simply adding depth to their offensive line in case of injury. The Dolphins are building for the future, and decided to strike while the iron was hot. The Texans, feel they have the ability to win now, and wanted to bolster the offensive weaknesses on their roster. For now, I would say the Texans win this deal because their value will be added immediately. However, if these picks end up being blockbusters for the future then the deal will sway towards the Dolphins for sure.

Photo Credit: https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/dolphins-locker-room-would-reportedly-revolt-if-team-deals-laremy-tunsil-to-texans/

Source Credit: https://www.pff.com/nfl/players/laremy-tunsil/10647