Who Should I Start? Braxton Berrios or Xavier Smith

Monday, March 10, 5:02 PM

Former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Braxton Berrios (knee) agreed to a one-year, $2 million deal with the Houston Texans on Monday, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter. The deal was negotiated by agents Drew Rosenhaus and Robert Bailey. Berrios heads to the AFC South division after suffering a torn left ACL in Week 7 of last year. When the 29-year-old pass-catcher is back to full health, he figures to give the Texans additional receiver depth behind Nico Collins and Christian Kirk (collarbone) with Tank Dell (knee) potentially missing all of the 2025 season. At best, though, Berrios will likely be limited in his playing time as a role player on offense while mostly contributing as a kick returner on special teams. The former sixth-round pick by the New England Patriots in 2018 out of the University of Miami had his best season in 2021 with the Jets, catching 46 of 65 passes for 431 yards and two touchdowns in 16 games (one start).

Saturday, August 16, 11:52 PM

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Xavier Smith caught all four of his targets for 48 receiving yards during Saturday's preseason victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. He also rushed for five yards. Smith has been quite productive this summer. He paced the team with 55 receiving yards last week, and he now has a total of eight touches and 108 scrimmage yards through two preseason contests. NFL opportunities have been few and far between for the 27-year-old Florida A&M product, but he did total six receiving yards, 36 rushing yards, and a pair of first downs in 2024. Los Angeles' first four wide receiver spots are essentially locked up, which means they only have two or three spots to divide over seven remaining receivers (Smith, Tru Edwards, Mario Williams, Konata Mumpfield, Drake Stoops, Britain Covey, and Brennan Presley).