Houston Texans: Grading Cecil Shorts Signing

By Kevin Parvizi | Mar 16, 2015

The Houston Texans decision to part ways with Andre Johnson was completely defensible, since the move was a long time coming. Johnson isn’t getting any younger, he would have set the Texans back too much financially, and the younger and more explosive DeAndre Hopkins thoroughly outplayed him last season. Johnson, who still played well, was unwilling to take a back seat as the No. 2 receiver in the offense behind the rising Hopkins, so that spelled the end of his time in Houston.

Of course, Johnson’s release created a huge hole for the Texans at the wide receiver spot across from Hopkins, and it’s a hole that this team has yet to fill. There are some worthy options on the free agent market in Michael Crabtree, Dwayne Bowe, Cecil Shorts, and Stevie Johnson, though the amount of teams interested in adding WR help means that the Texans will have to act quickly in order to secure their weapon of choice for Ryan Mallett (or Brian Hoyer) in 2015.

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The Texans should do more at the wide receiver position than just sign a good-but-not-great veteran of the remaining players in this year’s free agent crop, but signing someone is better than coming up empty-handed (obviously).

According to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle, Shorts visited with the Texans today, so it looks like he could be their main target at the position, though it will be interesting to see if they look into any of the other options available.

Shorts has seen his receiving yards, touchdowns, and yards per reception decrease in every season since his terrific breakout campaign in 2012, as a combination of injuries and ineffective play have caused him to become a prove-it-deal seeker and a buy-low candidate for other teams. Ideally, he’s a No. 3 or 4 receiver on a playoff team, and he clearly isn’t a safe enough player for the Texans to sign with the intent of playing him as Hopkins’s No. 2 guy.

That said, Shorts does have upside, because he did average a whopping 17.8 yards per reception with seven touchdowns as a playmaker in 2012, showing off plenty of YAC ability. Since then, he’s been markedly less effective, and he’s also been used less frequently on deep routes. Perhaps incorrect usage has been the main culprit for Shorts’s numbers over the past couple of seasons, though the recurring soft-tissue injuries probably beg to differ.

For the Houston Texans and other teams potentially interested in signing Shorts, it’s important for them to decide whether or not Shorts’s nagging injuries will be a long-term issue for their teams.

According to FOX Sports Ohio’s Zac Jackson, the Texans have indeed signed Shorts to a two-year deal, and this has since been confirmed by other reports. I’m very surprised to see that Shorts received more than just a one-year deal, since I thought he would just take that sort of a deal to prove himself, since he’s in the prime of his career at 27 and could have set himself up for an even bigger payday in 2016.

Of course, two years works out better for Shorts due to the apparent security that extra year gives him on paper, though the reality of his security will be determined by the reported guaranteed figures. I highly doubt Shorts will receive anything other than a very modest amount of guaranteed cash, since he’s a risk free agent signing compared to most veteran receivers (specifically Bowe and Johnson), and his nagging injuries speak for themselves.

That said, Cecil Shorts is a pro’s pro, a tough player, and a guy with a unique skill-set that gives him more upside than your average 27-year-old wideout. He may have, per Advanced Football Analytics, caught less than 50% of his passes last season with an absolutely atrocious average of 5.0 yards per target, but he did have a monstrous 2012 season and a solid, 66-catch 2013 season; the Texans could give him a bounce-back situation in a better offense.

It’s clear why the Jacksonville Jaguars decided to cut ties with him, as they have younger receivers who are more worth of Blake Bortles‘s targets. Moreover, Shorts absolutely stunk up the joint last season, so the Texans also have to be wary when it comes to relying too much on him. Again, he has the past production and the intriguing skill-set, so he brings No. 2 upside to the table.

Dec 7, 2014; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Cecil Shorts (84) at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Richard Dole-USA TODAY Sports

Still, the Texans must hedge their bets by selecting a wide receiver in this year’s draft at some point on the second day, as it would make more sense for the Texans to do whatever they can fortify their depth and talent at a position that was already thin before Johnson’s release turned it into a one-man (now a two-man, assuming Shorts bounces back) show.

The Texans needed to sign a wide receiver, and I don’t mind that they felt Shorts is their best option, since he has more playmaking ability than all the other available options.

He’s also more risky, though, so more help is needed at the position in order to ensure that Mallett is given a fair shake at QB, and it would also be nice for Hopkins to have some support in his first season as the team’s unquestioned No. 1 receiver.

Under the assumption that Shorts won’t receive much in the form of guaranteed money, it’s hard to not to like this deal, even though it’s a two-year deal with some risk involved.

The Houston Texans desperately needed help at the position, and they added someone who has the upside to threaten defenses. Again, plenty hinges on financial details, as always, but without those available, it’s hard to give this anything but a positive grade.

Final Grade: B-

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