Hopes were high when the Falcons acquired former No. 3 overall pick Jeff Okudah last offseason. The trade didn’t quite work out for either side and now the Ohio State product is headed west, inking a one-year deal to join the Texans.
Okudah was acquired in exchange for a fifth-rounder and wasn’t expected to look like the highly touted prospect he once was coming out of college. The compensation in the trade was evident of just where Okudah was in his career. Still, the hope was that he’d improve with the change of scenery.
After his first few starts, it seemed to be working. Many Falcons fans were ready to extend Okudah, and they were right to think that at the time. However, Okudah dealt with similar struggles that have plagued him during his career — inconsistencies and injuries.
Eventually, he was benched in favor of Clark Phillips, a rookie fifth-round pick. The chances of Okudah returning were always slim. It’s not exactly the worst thing in the world for the Falcons to have a fifth-round rookie breakout at the expense of Okudah, who was in the final year of his rookie contract and cost the team a Day 3 pick.
Good luck to Okudah in Houston, where he gets to play for a hell of a head coach in DeMeco Ryans and an emerging star quarterback in CJ Stroud.
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