Who Should I Start? John Metchie III or Devontez Walker

Thursday, May 1, 12:17 AM

The Houston Chronicle's Jonathan M. Alexander projects Houston Texans wide receiver John Metchie III to be left off the 53-man roster entering the start of the 2025 season this fall after the team added receivers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel in last week's draft. Houston also added Christian Kirk, Justin Watson and Braxton Berrios in free agency this offseason, creating a lot of competition for the 24-year-old, who has battled injuries and a cancer scare to produce just 40 catches for 412 yards and one touchdown since being drafted in the second round (44th overall) in 2022 out of Alabama. Alexander expects Metchie, Xavier Hutchinson, Berrios and Watson to be battling for the final two receiver spots this summer behind Higgins, Kirk and Nico Collins. Metchie is entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2025 and could be a trade candidate if it's clear he's not going to make the roster.

Saturday, August 24, 10:33 PM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Devontez Walker capped off the preseason in a lackluster way just like the rest of his training camp and preseason has gone. The rookie out of North Carolina caught one of his two targets for four yards against the Packers on Saturday which left him with a total of the exact same for the entire preseason. He was only targeted one other time and didn't catch that one. Walker has been dealing with a lot of injury issues through camp, so he was on and off the field for a lot of it. As it stands currently, he doesn't seem to be in line for a prominent role right away while Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, and Nelson Agholor are still the top three on the depth chart. Walker will need to battle Deonte Harty and Tylan Wallace for snaps after the starting trio.