Eric McAlister

McAlister suffered a Jones fracture at TCU's Pro Day in April 2026, directly costing him his draft slot and resulting in undrafted status. Recovery timelines range from 6–27 weeks, and NFL research shows players returning in under 10 weeks post-surgery show measurable performance decline — his availability for OTAs and early training camp is highly unlikely.

Signed by the Houston Texans as a UDFA, McAlister enters a WR room already headlined by Nico Collins, Jayden Higgins, and Tank Dell. Cracking a 53-man roster as a UDFA with an active foot injury is a steep climb — practice squad is the realistic floor, and outright release is a real possibility.

He sits behind Nico Collins, Jayden Higgins, Tank Dell, Jaylin Noel, Xavier Hutchinson, and Justin Watson — Houston used premium 2025 capital on Higgins and Noel, leaving essentially no target path for a UDFA in the near term.

McAlister pleaded guilty to a terroristic threat misdemeanor stemming from a 2024 arrest and subsequently violated bond conditions by testing positive for THC. While the legal matter appears resolved, it adds an additional flag teams weigh during roster-cut decisions at the back of the WR depth chart.

McAlister's 2025 TCU season (72/1,190/10, 17.6 YPC) was historically elite for the program and placed him among several dynasty analysts' top-10 WR prospects in this class pre-injury. The underlying production profile is real and suggests legitimate NFL-caliber receiving ability if he returns to full health.

At 6'3"–6'4" with a 4.52–4.56 40 time and 9.2 YAC per reception, McAlister profiles as the big-bodied deep threat with YAC ability that NFL teams covet. His 95.5 PFF grade on deep targets (15+ yards) in 2025 validates a legitimate big-play ceiling and a pathway to WR2 upside if he secures opportunity.

If McAlister sticks on the Texans roster, he develops under C.J. Stroud — one of the premier young QBs in the league — in a pass-volume offense that consistently produces fantasy-relevant WR production across multiple depth chart tiers.