In 2012, the Houston Texans went 12-4 and sent a whopping 7 offensive players to the Pro Bowl: QB Matt Schaub, RB Arian Foster, WR Andre Johnson, TE Owen Daniels, LT Duane Brown, LG Wade Smith, and C Chris Myers. But the success of that group probably feels like a distant memory, especially if you’ve looked at the Texans roster recently. Of that group, only Brown is still a Texan. In fact, Brown and RT Derek Newton are the only offensive players on the opening day rosters in both 2012 and 2016.
The Houston Texans threw a lot of money at Brock Osweiler this offseason, and also signed running back Lamar Miller. But a big reason for the turnover is that the wide receiver position has been completely remodeled: DeAndre Hopkins (24 years old, a first round pick in 2013), Will Fuller (22, 2016-1), Braxton Miller (24, 2016-3), Jaelen Strong (22, 2015-3), Keith Mumphery (24, 2015-5) are the five wide receivers on the team, while the tight end group (Ryan Griffin (26, 2013-6), C.J. Fiedorowicz (24, 2014-3), and Stephen Anderson (undrafted 2016) from Cal) is similarly young and new to Houston.
I looked at the Footballguys projections for 2016 and calculated the age of each team’s receiving game, weighted for the number of yards gained by each player (you can read more about this methodology here). The Texans, led overwhelmingly by Hopkins, have the youngest projected receiving game in 2016. Miami, with Jarvis Landry (24), DeVante Parker (23), and Kenny Stills (24) have the second youngest, while Minnesota comes in third with Stefon Diggs (22), Laquon Treadwell (21), and Kyle Rudolph (27):
| Rk | Tm | Age |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HOU | 23.8 |
| 2 | MIA | 24.5 |
| 3 | MIN | 24.7 |
| 4 | LA | 24.9 |
| 5 | NO | 25.0 |
| 6 | JAX | 25.1 |
| 7 | BUF | 25.2 |
| 8 | NYG | 25.2 |
| 9 | OAK | 25.3 |
| 10 | IND | 25.4 |
| 11 | PHI | 25.8 |
| 12 | CLE | 25.8 |
| 13 | PIT | 26.0 |
| 14 | SEA | 26.1 |
| 15 | CIN | 26.1 |
| 16 | TB | 26.2 |
| 17 | KC | 26.3 |
| 18 | ATL | 26.5 |
| 19 | CHI | 26.6 |
| 20 | SF | 26.7 |
| 21 | DET | 26.8 |
| 22 | SD | 26.9 |
| 23 | WAS | 27.0 |
| 24 | CAR | 27.2 |
| 25 | DEN | 27.4 |
| 26 | GB | 27.5 |
| 27 | BAL | 27.7 |
| 28 | TEN | 27.8 |
| 29 | ARI | 27.8 |
| 30 | NE | 27.8 |
| 31 | DAL | 28.0 |
| 32 | NYJ | 29.1 |
The Jets, unsurprisingly, rank as the oldest passing game. Brandon Marshall is 32 and Eric Decker is 29, and those two figure to make up over half of the team’s receiving pie. And while Quincy Enunwa is young (24), the fourth and fifth receivers are likely to be running backs
Matt Forte (31) and Bilal Powell (28). New York also released Jace Amaro, which means 2015 2nd round pick Devin Smith is one the only long-term plays in the offense. Another is likely Enunwa, who plays more of an H-back/TE role than that of wide receiver.
The Cowboys might surprise you, but Dez Bryant is already 28, Jason Witten is somewhere between 34 and 100, and Terrance Williams and Cole Beasley are each 27.
What stands out to you?