The Texans have agreed to terms on a four-year contract with sixth-round offensive lineman Austin Deculus, according to a league source.
Experienced, durable, and big, offensive tackle, Deculus played in more games than any player in LSU history.
He played in 61 career games in five seasons for the Tigers. He started 46 career games, including a national championship game victory over Clemson..
A four-year starter and former four-star recruit from Cy-Fair High School in Cypress, Texas, Deculus played in the East-West Shrine Bowl all-star game. He started 12 games last season and played 829 snaps.
Deculus gets high marks as a proven run-blocker at right tackle and in pass protection as well as being on the LSU football leadership council. Regarded as a Day 3 target, Deculus garnered consistently solid grades throughout the draft process.
“I think he’s a plug-and-play type, an eventual NFL starter, or at least a high-quality backup as a right tackle,” said Eric Galko, the East-West Shrine Bowl all-star game director of scouting and player personnel. “He can play tackle or guard. He’s a fundamentally sound tough kid and an evolving player for all those reasons. There are no worries about him.
“I see him playing five-plus years in the NFL. That kid will fit into the locker room. He can play multiple spots. He’s a very strong kid, he’s versatile, and he comes from a great program. He’s one of my favorite players. I could see him going in the fourth round or fifth round and becoming a starter as a rookie.”
Deculus (6-foot-5, 322 pounds) has run the 40-yard dash in 5.06 seconds. In his final game for LSU, Deculus played in the Texas Bowl. He started at right tackle in 46 of LSU’s last 49 games, including every game for LSU’s 15-0 squad in 2019.
“When it’s all said and done, even when I’m done playing football and I start raising kids and it’s still standing, being able to look back at it and know that throughout the greats that have come and will come through here, I got to have a record at the university that I loved since I was a kid. I’ll be able to show that to my own children,” Deculus told reporters last season. “As an offensive lineman, you play through pain every day.”
Deculus, who graduated with a degree in sports administration, was selected to the SEC Academic Honor Roll.
“I tell our scouting team sometime’s it’s not hard to evaluate someone,” Galko said. “Austin has played tackle and guard and has high character. He’s a smart kid. Don’t overthink it. He’s going to be an NFL player. He’s 1,000 percent going to get drafted and make a roster.”
Aaron Wilson is a Pro Football Network reporter and analyst and a contributor to Sports Talk 790.