In our NFL Nation mock draft, which aired live Monday afternoon, I selected Alabama safety Landon Collins 16th overall, with a brief explanation for why I did that.

I cited the fact that with the 16th pick, the Texans are very much at the mercy of what happened before them. The top three receivers -- Amari Cooper, Kevin White and DeVante Parker -- were all gone. Washington defensive tackle Danny Shelton, Kentucky outside linebacker Bud Dupree and Michigan State cornerback Trae Waynes -- other potential Texans targets -- were also taken.

Romeo Crennel has had success with safeties drafted high, and Collins is the best safety in this draft.

There's more to why I like this fit. Collins is a big, strong player who is faster than he's often given credit for being. He made most of his plays up close to the line of scrimmage, but has a wider range of knowledge from having played at Alabama, where safeties aren't designated as free or strong and have to learn both positions. That's Crennel's approach to safeties as well.

Safety is a position the Texans want to strengthen. Texans coach Bill O'Brien talked about that during the coach's breakfast at the league meetings last month. Last year they had Danieal Manning and D.J. Swearinger sharing a lot of responsibilities, but have not re-signed Manning.

Picking Collins came after some internal debate, though.

The toughest call was not taking Georgia running back Todd Gurley. Gurley was available in this draft at 16, but I'd bet he's gone by the 16th pick Thursday. The hesitation would be that he's coming off a torn anterior cruciate ligament, but given his age, that's not as big of a hurdle as it would be for an older back.

An offensive playmaker would absolutely help the Texans. While their need at receiver is greater than their need at running back for the time being, that will not be the case shortly. Arian Foster is turning 29 this August, has a high cap number approaching in 2016, and the Texans have to prepare to replace his production as he approaches and eventually passes age 30.

Ultimately, though, I felt the most likely of the remaining players that the Texans would draft would be Collins.