The Houston Texans have a significant issue that they thought had been addressed during the offseason: protecting C.J. Stroud. What the Texans do next is critical for Stroud and the season, and they could opt to trade for former New York Giants starter Evan Neal.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay suggested the move “jumpstart” the Texans.
Doing so could even allow them to shed other contracts, offsetting their losses financially and with whatever draft capital they surrendered in a Neal trade.
Texans Trade Proposal Lands Evan Neal From Giants
GettyEvan Neal #73 of the New York Giants looks on before their game against the New England Patriots.
The Giants selected Neal with the No. 7 overall pick of the 2022 draft. He started 13 games as a rookie. However, Neal has started 14 games since then, and none this season. That is why he could be available for a trade to the Texans or elsewhere.
Kay’s pitch calls for the Texans to surrender a late-round draft pick for Neal to address their “most glaring issue”: a “mess” of an offensive line that “could desperately use some help.”
According to Kay, the line has been the “catalyst behind” Stroud and the Texans’ 0-3 start.
Texans get:
- Evan Neal
Giants get:
- 2026 seventh-round pick
This is not the first time Neal has been a suggested trade target for the Texans. Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox also tabbed the Texans as a potential landing spot for the 6-foot-7, 340-pound Neal.
That it remains a suggestion speaks to how the Texans’ offseason planning has panned out for Stroud and Co.
Texans Urged to Make Deal With Giants
GettyEvan Neal #73 of the New York Giants celebrates a touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys.
Stroud has taken 8 sacks this season behind the Texans’ line. Moreover, he ranks in the top 10 for highest pressure rate and hits taken, per Pro Football Reference. He has seen the sixth-most blitzes among QBs through three weeks.
“The Texans’ decision to jettison multiple starters—including perennial Pro Bowler Laremy Tunsil—and rebuild the unit during the offseason has not paid off. Quarterback C.J. Stroud has already taken eight sacks on the year and hasn’t been able to spark the offense due to a glaring lack of protection,” Kay wrote on September 23.
“The versatile New York Giants veteran could play multiple positions for the Texans as they look to shuffle the deck and find a remedy for their woes in the offensive trenches.”
Kay argued that a trade could “do Neal wonders” as he braces for free agency in 2026.
“Per ProFootballFocus, Houston’s sieve-like o-line has at least 12 pressures and a 35 percent or higher pressure rate in each of its three games this year. Stroud has been pressured 40 times altogether, a large reason why the Texans rank in the bottom-eight of the league in both total and passing offense while averaging a league-low 12.7 points per game,” Kay wrote.
“Although Big Blue has been averse to deploying him in 2025, Neal is an experienced starter with a first-round pedigree. He’s appeared in 29 games—including 27 starts, mostly at the tackle spots—since the franchise drafted him at No. 7 overall in 2022.”
Texans Could Move Cam Robinson to Fund Move for Evan Neal
GettyCam Robinson #74 of the Minnesota Vikings sits on the bench during the NFC Wild Card Playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton listed Stroud and the Texans’ former starting left tackle, Cam Robinson, as a potential target for the Cleveland Browns. Robinson lost his job to rookie second-round pick Aireontae Ersery and could help the Browns.
“Once again, the Cleveland Browns offensive tackles are banged up,” Moton wrote on September 23, urging the Browns to reach out to the Texans about making a trade. “Robinson has 102 starts on his nine-year resume, and he’s currently a backup left tackle behind rookie second-rounder Aireontae Ersery.
“If the Texans plan to keep Ersery and Tytus Howard at tackle, with Blake Fisher in a reserve position, Robinson may be available on the trade block.”
Dealing Robinson to the Browns could give the Texans supplementary capital to land Neal.
If the Texans want Stroud to right their season, they must do a better job of giving Stroud time to find his playmakers. That is especially true since they struggle to threaten opposing defenses down the field.
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