The Houston Texans traded for Ryan Mallett from the Patriots in one of the more obvious deals in recent memory, but before that went down the team targeted Matt Barkley as a potential starter and now Mallett likely will start for the team once he is ready, even if it's not Week 1, as he should be a solid upgrade over Ryan Fitzpatrick after his struggles in the preseason.
According to Pro Football Talk, the Texans looked at the possibility of trading for Eagles backup Matt Barkley, as he has been pushed back by Mark Sanchez after his strong preseason. The reports says that the team called in on Barkley before pulling off the deal on Mallett and there is a good chance the Eagles asked for more than the Patriots, which is why the deal did not go down. The Texans acted like they were not looking for a QB this preseason, but clearly that was a smokescreen.
The Mallett trade was an obvious one for many reasons and now he could be poised to take over the starting job eventually. Mallett worked with Bill O'Brien in New England and he was coming into the final year of his contract, meaning the Patriots likely were not signing him back anyway. Mallett was traded for a conditional pick that could be a seventh or sixth rounder and while that isn't a great haul, it's better than nothing. The Pats likely would have released Mallett after the preseason, as the team rarely holds three QBs and after Jimmy Garoppolo played well in the preseason, it was time for him to take over as the backup.
Reports have Mallett now challenging for the starting job just yet, but he is already the number two QB and he will be in the mix if Fitzpatrick struggles. Barkley was likely the first target since he has more years of team control after coming in last season, but the Eagles likely did not want to give him up. Mallett has basically no pro experience, but he has plenty of potential after being drafted and he has size and a good arm. Fitz will struggle eventually and it's a good bet that Mallett ends up starting at some point.
