HOUSTON – The Texans drafted University of Michigan tight end and team captain Marlin Klein in the second round.
He was selected 59th overall after being projected later in the draft by most analysts.
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Klein has run the 40-yard dash in 4.61 seconds with a 36-inch vertical leap and a 9-9 broad jump.
“They’re going to get a fast and physical football player that’s willing to do whatever,” Klein said. “I don’t care if I have to play running back, wide receiver, defensive end, safety, special teams. I don’t care what I have to play. I just want to play and help the team win.”
A 6-foot-6, 248-pound native of Germany, Klein moved to the United States to attend a boarding school in Rabun Gap, Georgia to start playing American football.
This was done through the assistance of Gridiron Imports Foundation, a registered United States nonprofit organization. He attended the Rabun Gap-Nacooche School. Klein grew up playing soccer and basketball.
Bjorn Werner, a former Florida State and Indianapolis Colts first-round draft pick, runs the nonprofit and connected with Klein.
“He gave me the opportunity to change my life,” Klein said. “I moved to Georgia all by myself to boarding school at just 15 years old. I didn’t speak any English. I didn’t really know what football was about. They just told me to run fast towards the end zone and they were gonna throw the ball up.”
A three-time academic All-Big Ten Conference selection, Klein caught a career-high six passes for 93 yards and one touchdown against New Mexico last season.
At Michigan, he won a national championship. He caught 24 passes for 248 yards and one touchdown last season and was named honorable-mention All-Big Ten Conference.
The Texans had options to trade back, but opted to stick at 59 and make the Klein selection.
“We had multiple discussions,” Texans general manager Nick Caserio said. “We were kind of potentially trading a pick, moving it, had a few deals in place. Then, those fell apart. We had a couple of guys we were talking about picking and then Marlin was one of them.
“Marlin was kind of a no-brainer. It’s a player we really liked. His story is really impressive. Good size, runs well. I would say his best football is probably right in front of him. The type of player that has the right mentality, the right mindset, good work ethic, really smart.”
The Texans drafted Klein after Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq was the only tight end to go in the first round, selected by the New York Jets.
In the second round, the Philadephia Eagles drafted Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers five picks before Klein. Two picks later, the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted Texas A&M tight endnate Boerkircher.
The Los Angeles Rams drafted Ohio State tight end Max Klare two picks after Klein. Klare visited the Texans.
In the third round, the Chicago Bears selected Stanford tight end Sam Roush, the Miami Dolphins drafted Ohio State tight end Will Kacmarek, who visited the Texans, the New Orleans Saints drafted Georgia tight end Oscar Delp, who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.48 seconds and met virtually with the Texans, and the New England Patriots drafted Notre Dame tight end Eli Raridon
“The beauty of all this is everybody has their own board,” Caserio said. “So, you have your grades. You’re probably not all grading players the same way. When you go through this third round, the reality is they were basically coming out of the woodwork. There’s a lot of players that got drafted where you’re looking up there going, ‘Okay, I probably wouldn’t have drafted that player.’”
Klein met formally with the Texans at the NFL scouting combine, and he made a strong impression.
The Texans were sold on him as a person right away.
“Really after the combine we were done with him as far as the person because there really wasn’t much more there that we needed to talk about,” Caserio said. “We liked him from the beginning of the process until drafting him.”
Klein texted Texans new tight ends coach James Ferentz on Friday: “Let’s work, bring me home.”
“I wanted to come to Houston from the beginning,” Klein said. “My fiancee can tell you that. My family can tell you that. It’s a tough, physical football team. That’s the kind of place I would love to be a part of.”
Two seasons ago, Klein caught 13 passes for 108 yards.
He finished his career with 38 career catches for 364 yards and one score.
He played behind Chicago Bears standout tight end Colston Loveland and Dallas Cowboys tight end Luke Schoonmaker and A.J. Barner in Ann Arbor initially.
“I chose Michigan because I knew these guys were going to be in the room,” Klein said. “Being around that caliber of players has taught me so much. They showed me the daily grind, the work that you have to put in every single day to make things happen and be successful.”
Klein has been to Houston before, winning a national championship at Reliant Stadium.
“I remember standing on the field, FaceTiming my best friend, just taking in the moment,” Klein said. “One of the most memorable days in my life.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com