Texans QB coach Karl Dorrell said about QB Matt Schaub: "If you’re an elite player in this league, you’re able to be a crunch time player. I know Matt’s really right there; he’s on the cusp of being one of those players.

"I think in his mind he knows he can play better, and he would like to put this on his shoulders and get this team to the Super Bowl."

Dorrell also said there's more Schaub can bring to the table and he's "ready to take it up a notch in 2013." We rank Schaub 20th on our QB list. With such a great running attack, the passing game takes a hit despite having some nice targets to throw to. We think the addition of WR DeAndre Hopkins could help, but right now Schaub is a low-end QB2.

Wide receivers coach Larry Kirksey on rookie WR DeAndre Hopkins:

“I just think the kid’s a very talented young man. He’s got good size, good range, and outstanding ball skills. He works. From day one, every pass he caught he sprinted not 10, not 20, 30 but 40, 50 yards down the field after the catch. That’s what we ask for in our receivers. I think he’s off to a great start from that standpoint.

"I was happy to see how he grasps the things we ask him to do. He studied what we gave him from the book, and then he went out and his athletic ability took over, and he was able to make plays. He’s just got to continue to do that."

Other than perhaps Tavon Austin, DeAndre Hopkins has the clearest path to major snaps and targets of all the rookies in the class of 2013. The Texans desperately need a threat opposite an aging Andre Johnson, which is why the Texans used a first round pick on Hopkins. He's currently our #45 WR in standard formats.

Some opponents suggest that Texans WR Andre Johnson has lost perhaps a half-step, and isn’t as explosive. Johnson had only four touchdown catches last season, his fewest since 2002 in a season in which he played at least nine games.

Johnson started all 16 games last year, the first time since 2009, and finished with a career high 1,598 yards with 112 catches. But perhaps the purpose of the blurb is to mention the team is hoping first round pick WR DeAndre Hopkins eventually takes over as the team's WR1 down the road. We ranked Hopkins 46th among our WRs, but he has an ADP of the 11th round so he's getting some attention. We rank Johnson 10th among our WRs with an ADP of the third round.

Texans WR DeAndre Hopkins has practiced with the first-team offense, which meant he and Andre Johnson were the starting receivers. The veteran and team-captain also believes Hopkins is well on his way to contributing.

“He’s picking up everything pretty well,” Johnson said after Monday’s practice. “He went and made some plays today and that’s a good thing. I think day-by-day, he’ll continue to get better and better.”

We currently have Hopkins ranked #56 among WRs, but his stock could rise if he continues to have a good offseason.

Last year, there really weren’t any Texans WRs that stood out from the bunch, or distinguished themselves in camp as better than the incumbent Kevin Walter, who knew the playbook.

But just in rookie minicamp, DeAndre Hopkins CLEARLY stood out as someone who looks like he can play grown man football.

Setting the stage: First session of rookie minicamp. In the practice bubble due to bad weather. Poorly thrown ball goes Hopkins way and he snatches it in stride with one hand and heads up field. Huge assembled media almost in unison says, “Whoa, did you see that?”

And then keeps doing it. Highpointing balls that defenders have better position on and snatching out of air. Finding an obvious second gear in going after an overthrown ball. Catching tough balls in traffic. Diving for low thrown balls and getting them. Very natural catching the ball.

So, yes, the rest of the wide receivers at camp looked competent in what they were doing. But so many of the whoa catches came from Hopkins.

In her piece, Texans beat writer Stephanie Stradley says that she is usually pessimistic about rookie receivers, so her praise for Hopkins' early play is meaningful. It certainly feels like Hopkins is going to start opposite Andre Johnson in Week 1.

Texans DeAndre Hopkins looked every bit like a first-round draft pick in the team's recent rookie minicamp. The Clemson wide receiver caught seemingly everything thrown his way, with at least one highlight-reel one-handed grab on all three days of practice. That included Sunday, when he caught a lofted deep ball from Case Keenum down the left sideline with his left hand while his right arm was being held by a defensive back who was on his back as Hopkins made the catch falling to the ground.

Texans coach Gary Kubiak had consistently high praise for Hopkins, the No. 27 overall pick in the 2013 draft. “He’s special,” Kubiak said Sunday. “Ball skills are extremely special. Very long; long arms. Big hands; you saw the catch he made out here today. He’s going to help us early, and we know that, and that’s why we brought him here.”

It certainly sounds like the Texans are planning to start Hopkins from the get-go. We currently have him ranked as the #56 WR, but he will move up if he had a good summer. Consider him a fantasy WR5 for now.

In the Texans’ 11-year history, all but two of their first-round draft picks have started on opening day as rookies.

It sounds like wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, the 27th overall pick out of Clemson, has a good chance to continue that trend.

“I’m expecting it right off the get-go,” Texans coach Gary Kubiak said Monday after being asked how quickly Hopkins might be ready for a big role. “He’s going in there, he’s gonna get the reps. It’s gonna be a very competitive situation, but we took him there because we expect him to play very, very early and touch (the ball).”

“This guy’s on his way to being a pro already, and we’ve got to help him get there real fast.”

“We love this guy,” Texans general manager Rick Smith said. “He is a guy who we thought could best come into this situation and help us the quickest, and not only quickly but this guy can evolve and develop into quite a player.”

It sounds as if Hopkins will have a good chance to start from the get-go. As a real-world WR2, he's likely to go in the later rounds (10th-12th) of fantasy drafts, depending on how the hype machine gets going.