The Texans are trading veteran cornerback Keion Crossen to the New York Giants for a sixth round draft pick, according to league sources not authorized to speak publicly.
Due to injuries and Bradley Roby's performance enhancing drug suspension, the core special-teams contributor started the final four games of the year last season and finished with a career-high 46 tackles and five passes defensed. He played a career-high 28 percent of the overall defensive snaps and also played 59 percent of the special teamssnapped.
Crossen allowed some catches, but he also knocked away throws intended for Pro Bowl wide receivers, including the Chicago Bears' Allen Robinson and then-Cincinnati Bengals standout A.J. Green.
At 5-foot-10, 185 pounds, Crossen is relatively undersized in terms. He's also extremely athletic.He's runthe 40-yard dash in 4.28 seconds. He's also strong and competitive and a hard hitting, sure tackler.
A former New England Patriots seventh-round draft pick from Western Carolina acquired by the Texans in a trade for a sixth-round draft pick, CrossenheldGreen to four catches for 64 yards on seven targets and no scores last season. He had four passes defensed against Cincinnati as they tried to target Crossen and exploit Green's superior size. Crossen knocked the deep throws away and had the most passes defended by a Texans player since Johnathan Joseph with four in 2015 against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Aaron Wilson has covered the NFL for 20 years and has previously written for The Houston Chronicle and The Baltimore Sun. He’s on Twitter: @AaronWilson_NFL and Instagram: @aaronwilson7128
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