This hasn't been a calendar year to remember for the Houston Texans. The club struggled mightily in 2020, finishing a distant third in the AFC South with a 4-12 record, and the team couldn't even cash in on a high draft selection thanks to a previous trade with Miami. To make matters worse, star quarterback Deshaun Watson has asked for a trade out of Houston, but off-the-field issues surrounding the three-time Pro Bowler have sunk any sort of trade value, keeping him in a Texans uniform for the moment. While those were certainly the headlines over this abysmal stretch, they've also been a tad unlucky to boot.
The latest example of that comes outside of the first round of the 2021 draft where the Texans just missed out on selecting Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond with the 67th overall pick. According to Mond's father, Kevin, Houston was on the brink of taking the young quarterback, but the Minnesota Vikings plucked him off the board one pick in front of them at No. 66.
"[There was a] phone call from his agent, text message, and the agent said, 'Hey, the Houston Texans are getting ready to select [Kellen] at pick 67,'" Kevin Mond said, via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "So, we're sitting on the couch and [Kellen] gets the phone call a couple of minutes later and it's a team. ... Then, when he hung up the phone, he goes, 'I'm going to the Vikings.' The Texans had already told his agent they're getting ready to take him at pick 67. The Vikings happened to have the pick 66."
With the dream of bringing Mond into the fold now dead, the Texans pivoted and selected Stanford quarterback Davis Mills with the 67th overall pick in the third round. While Mond is one of the more intriguing young quarterbacks in this class, he'll need time to develop, which is something he may not have been given had he ended up in Houston given the uncertainty under center. With Kirk Cousins embedded as the starter in Minnesota, Mond can have an easier transition into the NFL, which his father believes he'll be better for whenever his number is eventually called.
"I think he's comfortable and he likes the decision," Kevin Mond said. "He's thrilled about being in Minnesota. ... In Houston, he might be rushed into it. [He can] sit back and watch and learn. But he's a fast learner."
