These 3 Texans players earned incentive bonuses for their play in 2024

Tim Settle, Eric Murray and Mario Edwards Jr. are all about to get paid for their efforts with the Houston Texans in 2024.

Players across the NFL are given incentives in their new contracts, allowing them to earn more money for hitting certain milestones throughout their run toward a postseason push.

Some accolades include receiving yards total. Others are based on playoff positioning and win totals.

That’s the case with several members of the Houston Texans and a few of them are set to cash in thanks to their performance in 2024.

According to Spotrac, defensive linemen Tim Settle and Mario Edwards Jr., plus safety Eric Murray, have all checked the necessary boxes to earn additional money.

The fact that they reached those incentives is a sign of how well they’ve played and how much they’ve contributed this season.

Tim Settle

Incentives earned: $500,000

Settle had two tiers of bonuses based on playing time, ranging from 40% to 50%. Having played 58.5% of the defensive snaps this season, he earned the maximum playing time bonus of $500,000 entering Week 18.

Mario Edwards Jr.

Incentives earned: $350.000

Edwards, who was suspended for four games, had a similar playing time bonus built into his contract, ranging from 35 to 55%. Having played 56.2% of the defensive snaps this season, he earned the maximum playing time bonus of $350,00 regardless of his rep count in Week 18’s finale.

Eric Murray

Incentives earned: $350,000

Murray, who expanded his role after Jimmie Ward replaced Jalen Pitre in the nickel made an extra $350,00 for playing 70% of the snaps (he played 80.4%). In a breakout year, Murray finished with a career-high 71 tackles and an interception for the AFC South champions.

Panthers HC Dave Canales: OLB DJ Johnson involved in car accident

Panthers HC Dave Canales told reporters on Friday that OLB DJ Johnson was involved in a car accident this week. He will not play on Sunday.

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales told reporters on Friday that outside linebacker DJ Johnson was involved in a car accident this week.

Canales was asked about the second-year defender’s sudden inclusion on this week’s injury report, which listed Johnson as out for Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Atlanta Falcons due to a personal matter.

“It was a car accident,” Canales stated this afternoon. “That’s pretty much what I know about it. But enough to the point where he’s in evaluation right now.”

He was then asked about Johnson’s current condition.

“I have not seen him,” replied Canales, who also added that Johnson’s accident was not life-threatening.

Johnson was selected in the third round of the 2023 NFL draft.

He has appeared in 14 games this season.

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Pro Bowl snub cost Texans DE Danielle Hunter a nice bonus for 2024 season

Danielle Hunter missing the Pro Bowl might have cost him a bit of cash for 2024.

While Danielle Hunter might rank in the top three for sacks entering Week 18, the Houston Texans defensive end was not one of the three edge rushers selected for the AFC Pro Bowl roster.

Now, his paycheck is suffering the consequences.

According to CBS Sports’ Joel Corry, Hunter’s two-year contract with the included a $1 million bonus for making the Pro Bowl. He’s currently the first alternate behind Cleveland Browns’ Myles Garrett, Cincinnati Bengals’ Trey Hendrickson and Las Vegas Raiders’ Maxx Crosby.

The voting isn’t entirely wrong since Garrett and Hendrickson have a case.

The AFC North duo are tied for the league lead in sacks with 14 apiece. Garrett, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, also ranks first in tackles for loss and third in QB hits with 28.

Fans have questioned the move of Crosby over Hunter. Not only is the four-time Pro Bowler from Minnesota healthy entering the final regular season game, his numbers outweigh Crosby’s on every level.

Hunter’s 13 sacks outgain Crosby’s 7.5 by nearly double.

His 17 tackles for loss are one more than Crosby’s 16.

And Hunter leads the league with 90 pressures, according to NFL’s Next Gen stats. Crosby? He’s only totaled 53.

While Crosby is likely to miss the game after undergoing ankle surgery, Hunter’s proven stats were worthy of a first-ballot nod. Time will tell if he opts in and gets a chance to earn the bonus as an alternate next month.

The Texans close out the 2024 regular season on the road against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium on Sunday. Kickoff from Nashville is scheduled for noon CT.

Panthers Week 18 injury report: 2 key defensive starters out vs. Falcons

The Panthers will once again be without CB Jaycee Horn and ILB Josey Jewell.

Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn will not be finishing out his Pro Bowl campaign.

Horn, who was officially named to his first Pro Bowl Games yesterday morning, has been ruled out for Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Atlanta Falcons due to his hip injury. The fourth-year defender also missed last week’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Inside linebacker Josey Jewell will also sit out of this weekend’s contest with a concussion. Like Horn, Jewell did not suit up for Week 17’s trip to Raymond James Stadium.

Here’s the full injury report from Friday:

Injury Wednesday Thursday Friday Game status
OLB Amaré Barno Shoulder DNP DNP DNP Out
CB Jaycee Horn Hip DNP DNP DNP Out
G Robert Hunt Knee DNP Limited DNP Questionable
ILB Josey Jewell Concussion DNP DNP DNP Out
S Lonnie Johnson Jr. Shoulder/neck DNP DNP DNP Out
CB Mike Jackson Rest DNP Full Full
DL A’Shawn Robinson Neck DNP DNP Limited Questionable
OLB D.J. Wonnum Rest DNP Limited Full
OT Taylor Moton Knee Limited DNP Limited Questionable
RB Miles Sanders Ankle Full Limited Full Questionable
WR Xavier Legette Hip/wrist Full Limited Limited Questionable
S Nick Scott Illness DNP Full Full
OLB Jadeveon Clowney Rest DNP Full Questionable
OLB DJ Johnson Personal DNP Out

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Washington officially announces Ryan Walters as new defensive coordinator

Washington has officially announced the hire of its new defensive coordinator.

In a move that had been rumored for over a week, the Washington Huskies officially announced the hire of former Purdue head coach Ryan Walters as the team’s new defensive coordinator on Friday morning. Walters will replace Steve Belichick, who spent one season with the team and is expected to join his father in the same role at North Carolina.

“Today, Washington Football added a tremendous defensive coach and person to our program,” Jedd Fisch said in a press release. “Hiring Ryan Walters allows us to continue to build on the foundation of the 2024 defense while continuing to grow and improve. His experience in the Big Ten Conference was vital in this hire, along with having deep family ties in the Seattle area. Amber and I are excited to welcome Ryan, Tara, and their two boys into our Husky Family.”

Although Walters struggled as a head coach with the Boilermakers, going 5-19 over two years in the Big Ten, he has a strong resumé as a defensive coordinator. After spending five years in the SEC at Missouri, acting as a co-defensive coordinator in 2016 and 2017 before taking the full-time role for the next three seasons, he traveled to Illinois and quickly became one of the most popular names in the country.

In his final season at Illinois in 2022, his defense was dominant. It finished No. 1 in the nation in scoring, allowing an average of 12.3 points per game, and No. 2 in total defense, surrendering 263.8 yards per contest. It also produced four NFL players, including three defensive backs, headlined by Seattle Seahawks star cornerback and top-five NFL draft pick Devon Witherspoon.

Washington’s announcement didn’t specify whether Walters, who has a background as a defensive backs coach, will also take over as the team’s safeties coach after Vinnie Sunseri, who held the position in 2024, left for the defensive coordinator job at Jacksonville State.

3 keys to a Bills victory vs. the Patriots in Week 18

3 keys to a Bills victory vs. the Patriots in Week 18

The Buffalo Bills will play the New England Patriots on the road at Gillette Stadium in Week 18.

The Bills (13-3) have won 10 of their last 11 games, while the Patriots (3-13) have lost six games in a row.

The Bills are favored by only 2.5 points given that they are expected to rest their starters for much of the game. In the first matchup between these two AFC East foes in Week 16, the Bills skated by with a 24-21 victory.

Even though the Patriots have just three wins this year, nothing is guaranteed in the NFL. Buffalo will need to execute its game plan to pick up its 14th win of the year.

With that, here are three keys to a Bills win in Week 18:

Staying healthy

Getty Images

The Week 18 game doesn’t matter for the Bills as they are locked into the two seed in the AFC.

While it remains to be seen how much playing time the Bills’ key players will see, the main thing will be the team’s health for the wild card round next week.

If the Bills get out of this one with no new injuries and some valuable reps for backup players, that’s a win.

Beware of Drake Maye

USA Today Sports

Quarterback Drake Maye continues to be the only hope the Patriots have of winning games. The rookie can make you pay if you aren’t executing on defense.

According to head coach Jerod Mayo, Maye will be suiting up for this one.

Maye made some great plays the last time these teams met in Week 16. He showed his potential in the league while making the game closer than many expected. He posted a 90.2 passer rating and threw for two scores. 

Put backups in positions to succeed

Imagn Images

The Bills should have plenty of time to get a good look at their depth players and younger talent. Even if the Bills fall short on the scoreboard, you can consider it a win if guys are getting valuable reps and starting to get comfortable on the field. 

If the coaching staff pulls the right levers without going deep into the playbook, the Bills could walk out with their 14th win despite resting their main contributors.

Washington OL signee Peter Langi reopens his recruitment

One of Washington’s five offensive line signees is looking for a new home.

As quickly as Peter Langi arrived at Washington, he departed. On Friday morning, the 6-foot-7, 345-pound offensive lineman from Archbishop Riordan High School in Northern California announced his decommitment from the Huskies through Sports Illustrated.

“I’ve decommitted from UW and got out of the contract,” Langi told Mitch Stevens. “I don’t really want to speak on the UW situation. It just didn’t feel right with me and that’s about it.”

Langi, who is ranked as a three-star offensive lineman and No. 80 interior lineman in the 2025 class by 247Sports, signed with the Huskies during the early signing window along with four other offensive linemen. After his announcement, he quickly received a crystal ball prediction from 247’s Brandon Huffman to commit to Arizona, where his younger brother Michael is committed to coach Brent Brennan’s 2026 class.

His high school teammate, Losipini Tupou, also signed with the Wildcats as part of the 2025 class.

“I don’t know where I’m heading yet, but I’ll figure it out. I’m about to plan some visits but some schools are in the playoff right now so I’m just waiting for it to end,” he said. “Others just got out of the playoff so I’m planning with them first along with a couple more for this month.”

At the time of his commitment, Langi held 39 offers and picked the Huskies out of his top six which also included Arizona, Auburn, Penn State, Texas, and Texas A&M.

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Titans add more fuel to fire with unfiorm selection for matchup with Texans

The Tennessee Titans are adding a bit more fuel to the fire when taking on the Houston Texans.

Oh look, it’s Tennessee finding a way to live in the past against the City of Houston again.

Maybe the Titans wish it was at least 2021 to see what winning looks like for the first time in years.

To no one’s surprise, the Titans will close out their season by wearing their Houston Oilers’ Luv Ya Blue jerseys against the Houston Texans on Sunday at Nissan Stadium. The last-place AFC South team wore those jerseys last season when the Texans visited Nashville before Christmas.

The hope is Houston (9-7) can pull out another victory while the once-Oilers franchise suffers once more, though most Texans fans probably wish to avoid overtime.

When then-Oilers owner Bud Adams moved the franchise from Houston to Memphis in 1997, he took all of the franchise’s history with him, including the logo, uniforms, and record books. The branding changed in 1999 from Oilers to Titans when the team officially called Nashville home, but Adams retained the rights to everything associated with the Oilers branding.

Since the Texans were founded in 2002, the city has tried to incorporate some bit of homage to the “H-Town Blue” in their uniform scheme, though Amy Adams-Strunk has a firm clasp on how the color can be used.

Most recently, Houston rebranded with a different shade off of “Columbia Blue” in the new “H-Town” uniform, capped off with a Blue H on the helmet.

While Texans players hate seeing a team don a uniform that doesn’t have anything to do with the state of Tennessee, Titans players understand how much the jersey means to Adams Strunk and a win over Houston.

“I think the real message behind it is (former Oilers players) didn’t feel like they had a home,” defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons told reporters on Wednesday. “Especially since the uniforms started in Houston and came here now with the Tennessee Titans. So it’s like, ‘Where do we have a home at?’ So with us wearing those uniforms, it means a lot and I know it means a lot to our former players who played in those uniforms.”

Simmons also knows the Texans would love nothing more than to send the Titans a loss while donning the Oiler logo.

“It’s our job not to get embarrassed in those uniforms,” Simmons said. “I’m sure that the Texans would love to embarrass us in that uniform, especially with what we did earlier this year to them.”

Washington finishes strong against Maryland to earn first Big Ten win 75-69

Washington showed it has what it takes to close out games against strong opponents in the Big Ten.

The Washington Huskies earned a 75-69 victory over the Maryland Terrapins on Thursday night, their first in the Big Ten. The win sent a message that the Huskies have what it takes to grind out tough games in their new conference.

“You’re not going to trick any of these coaches,” coach Danny Sprinkle said after the game. “You’re not going to trick the players. You’re not going to come up with a new play out of a time out, like things like that.

“You have to screen. You have to cut hard. You have to play with physicality. You got to finish at the rim with physicality. It’s the basic basketball stuff that wins in this league, and you have to do it at an extremely high level.”

Sprinkle had his team slow the game down and control the pace against a Terps offense that came into Alaska Airlines Arena ranked No. 12 in the country, averaging 87.2 points per game, by playing through his star, Great Osobor.

The senior finished with his fourth double-double of the season, stuffing the stat sheet with 20 points on an efficient 8-12 from the field, adding 14 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and a block, while also giving the ball away 6 times.

“If you don’t expect to win these games, you might as well not show up,” Osobor said after the game.

Coming off the bench, freshman guard Zoom Diallo showed up too. The Tacoma product added 18 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, and 2 blocks as the former high-profile recruit continues to establish himself as an important part of Washington’s backcourt.

The Huskies trailed Maryland by as many as 9 points early in the second half, but never rolled over despite forward Julian Reese’s best efforts. The senior finished with 22 points and 7 rebounds before fouling out in the game’s final seconds.

Down the stretch, Washington managed to do what it hasn’t all season long, shoot the ball. With 2:28 to play, senior DJ Davis buried a three-pointer to give the Huskies a six-point lead before converting at the free throw line to seal the victory.

Thanks to a 6-6 performance at the charity stripe from Davis, the Huskies shot 78.3 percent from the line, while Maryland struggled, converting just 68.2 percent of its free throws. Washington also won the battle of the boards, outrebounding the Terps 33-29, and held one of the conference’s top three-point shooting teams to just 2-11 (18.2 percent) from long range.

Maryland, which ranked No. 24 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll and just outside the top 25 of the AP Poll, was just the start of the toughest part of Washington’s schedule. Five of the Huskies’ next six opponents are ranked inside the top 25, with the No. 22 Illinois Fighting Illini up next on Sunday, January 5 at 1:00 inside Alaska Airlines Arena, who are coming off a blowout win over the No. 9 Oregon Ducks.

Jeremiah Smith breaks Ohio State and Big Ten record in Rose Bowl Victory

Generational talent #GoBucks

As the kids say, Jeremiah Smith is a cheat code. Just throw the ball in his general vicinity and there’s a good chance he’s going to come down with the catch.

Smith has been breaking records all season at Ohio State and he added his name to the record books twice more after an outstanding Rose Bowl performance. On the game, the freshman phenom pulled in seven receptions for 187 yards and two scores. Those totals would put Smith as the record holder in two more categories.

First, with his 187 receiving yards, Smith breaks another record held by Cris Carter, most receiving yards in a single game by a freshman. Carter held the record with 172 yards receiving in the 1985 Rose Bowl, a game the Buckeyes would lose to USC 20-17.

Smith wasn’t done etching his name in the record books just yet. He would also move to the top of the list in Big Ten history with the most touchdown receptions by a freshman. He broke the record with his first score and padded the number with the second giving him 14 on the year. The previous record was 12 set by Rondale Moore of Purdue in 2018.

In addition to the aforementioned records, Smith also holds the Ohio State freshman receiving records for yards in a season (1,224), receptions (70), and receiving touchdowns in a season (14) with the possibility of adding to those numbers with at least one more game to play.

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