Texans had Saquon Barkley’s interest first before he signed with Eagles

Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley liked the idea of signing with the Houston Texans before being offered more money.

Running back Saquon Barkley might have ended up with the Houston Texans instead of the Philadelphia Eagles.

That isn’t new information, as it was reported the Texans offered Barkley a slightly smaller contract than the one he ultimately signed with the Eagles. However, Barkley said on the “New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce” podcast that Houston originally had his attention before offers were put on the table in free agency.

“Probably the first team that had my first interest was Houston,” he said. “I got to communicate with C.J. [Stroud] and a couple of those boys.”

This lines up with all the reporting ahead of free agency that linked Barkley to the Texans. Head coach DeMeco Ryans even said at the NFL owners meetings this week that the team had a plan to add a running back this offseason.

It sounds as though the interest between Barkley and the team was mutual, but the money was different. Houston offered Barkley a three-year, $33 million deal, according to KPRC 2’s Aaron Wilson, and he ended up signing a three-year, $37.7 million deal worth up to $46.75 million with Philadelphia. Picking the Eagles also allowed Barkley to return to Pennsylvania, where he grew up and where his family lives.

When Barkley signed with Philadelphia, Houston pivoted to a trade for Joe Mixon. The Texans extended Mixon soon after on a three-year, $27 million deal with $13 guaranteed — $6 million less than the offer for Barkley.

Texans named as best landing for free agent CB Adoree’ Jackson

The Houston Texans still need cornerback help, and Pro Football Focus thinks they should sign veteran Adoree’ Jackson.

Free agency hit its crescendo earlier this month with the start of the 2024 league year, but a lot of big names in the open market as still available.

The Houston Texans have already spent a lot of money in free agency, but the team still has about $21.6 million in salary cap space to work with, per Over the Cap, before the 2024 NFL draft in less than a month. And with needs at cornerback, wide receiver, defensive tackle and linebacker, Houston could dip into the free agent pool once more.

One of the names Pro Football Focus’ Brad Spielberger believes would be a good signing for the Texans is former New York Giants cornerback Adoree’ Jackson. Spielberger wrote that while injuries limited him in every season since 2018, Jackson “has true inside-outside versatility” at the cornerback position “with good lateral agility and a knack for making plays on the football.”

Jackson, who’ll be 29 by the start of this upcoming season, has two interceptions and 23 defended passes for the past three years with the Giants. His yards per target have gone up, though, from 4.8 in 2021 to 8.5 this past season and he’s missed 14 games during his tenure in New York.

Houston needs another starting cornerback to play alongside Derek Stingley Jr. And unless the team decides to re-sign 2023 starter Steven Nelson, the Texans will be forced to either sign someone else, draft someone or start either Jeff Okudah or C.J. Henderson.

Jackson would not be the most ideal option in this scenario given his durability, age and declining production, but he’s proven to be a better cornerback than the others currently on the Texans’ roster behind Stingley. He’d be relatively expensive, though, with a market value of $11.3 million annually, per Spotrac.

Texans general manager Nick Caserio hasn’t been a person to spend lavishly at positions of need unless the production warrants it, and Jackson could be considered an overspend given his recent performances.

How the Texans created $6.4 million in Shaq Mason’s restructured contract

The Houston Texans made a savvy front-office move to give the team more financial flexibility in 2024.

The Houston Texans added $6.4 million to their salary cap for the 2024 season after offensive guard Shaq Mason agreed to a contract restructure.

The Texans converted around $8 million from his original $9.25 million for 2024 into a signing bonus, per KPRC 2’s Aaron Wilson. This lowered Mason’s cap hit for this season from $12.3 million to $5.688 million.

The restructure altered the three-year, $36 million extension Mason signed before the 2023 season following his trade from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Houston. The Texans now have around $21.6 million in salary cap space, according to Over The Cap.

Mason, 31, started all 17 games for the Texans in 2023 and led the entire team with 1,131 snaps.

What the Texans do with this extra cap space remains to be seen. They were reportedly interested in a trade for wide receiver Keenan Allen before the Los Angeles Chargers sent him to the Chicago Bears, but it’s unclear if a veteran trade is still on the table for general manager Nick Caserio. Houston and wide receiver Nico Collins also have mutual interest in a contract extension as the 21-year-old enters the final year of his rookie contract.

2024 NFL free agency: Texans re-sign LB/ST Neville Hewitt

The Houston Texans brought back their top special teams player from 2023 in Neville Hewitt.

The Houston Texans brought back one of their best special teams players from this past season.

Houston agreed to a one-year deal with linebacker Neville Hewitt, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The details of Hewitt’s deal have not been reported. Hewitt played almost exclusively on special teams — 366 snaps — where he led the Texans with 13 tackles.

 

Texans special teams coordinator called Hewitt the team’s “tone setter” this past season, his third in Houston. The Texans ranked as the No. 1 special teams unit in 2023, according Rick Gosselin

“The guy was a machine – high motor, high effort,” Ross said, per Gosselin. “He maximizes his skill set. He had a monster year.”

Hewitt joined the Texans as a free agent in 2021 after three years with the Miami Dolphins and three years with the New York Jets. He split time between the defense and special teams in 2021 before slowly moving over to special teams in a full-time role by 2023.

The Texans retained a couple of other special teams players from this past season, including return specialist Steven Sims Jr. and kick coverage specialist Eric Murray. Houston added other players to its special teams including Lonnie Johnson, Del’Shawn Phillips and Mike Ford. The Texans re-signed kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn and brought in ex-Kansas City Chiefs punter Tommy Townsend.

Rams and Texans to hold joint practices in Houston this summer

The Rams will head to Houston for practices with the Texans this summer, which means they’ll have a road preseason game against them, too

The NFL hasn’t yet released the schedule for the 2024 season, but we know which teams the Los Angeles Rams will face. We also know one of their preseason opponents thanks to a report from Aaron Wilson of Click2Houston.com.

According to Wilson,  the Texans will host the Rams for joint practices this summer before facing them in the preseason. The Rams put a lot of value in these practices with other teams, particularly because they don’t usually play their starters in the preseason.

These joint practices with Houston will feature four of the top rookies form the 2023 season. C.J. Stroud edged out Puka Nacua for Offensive Rookie of the Year, while Will Anderson Jr. beat out Kobie Turner for the defensive award.

Last summer, the Rams practiced with the Raiders and Broncos. It’s reasonable to think they’ll add a second team to practice with this offseason, too.

Texans hypothetical trade sends veteran DT to Houston

The Houston Texans need a defensive tackle. Here’s an option they could acquire in the veteran trade market.

The Houston Texans have been no stranger to offseason trades this spring.

They completed three big ones in short succession in the first wave of free agency: first for running back Joe Mixon, then by trading away defensive tackle Maliek Collins and finally by trading out the first round with the Minnesota Vikings.

Another NFL analyst thinks Houston could make another. The 33rd Team’s Dan Pizzuta wrote that Houston could be a destination if the Carolina Panthers trade defensive tackle Derrick Brown. The former 2020 No. 7 overall pick made his first Pro Bowl in 2023 with two sacks and 15 quarterback hits. He has eight sacks for his career.

Defensive tackle is an obvious need for the Texans in 2024. Collins and Sheldon Rankins — the team’s two 2023 starters — are both gone and Houston hasn’t found any true starter replacements yet. The 2024 draft is an option, but the Texans won’t pick until the No. 42 selection.

Brown would be a quality stop-gap option for the Texans if this is the route they go down. He’s known as a quality run-stuffer who’s in the final year of his rookie deal and a fifth-year option would cost a team $11.7 million in guaranteed salary. The Panthers have a brand new coaching staff in place who may not need Brown, either.

The cost to acquire Brown might not be very high, either, if the Panthers are looking to get rid of him. He isn’t the most productive defensive tackle out there, but his youth (he’ll be 26 in April), size (6-foot-5, 320 pounds) and potential are there for the taking. The Texans already signed two other former 2020 first-rounders in cornerbacks C.J. Henderson and Jeff Okudah. Why not grab a third?

Texans DE Danielle Hunter took less money to play in Houston, per report

The Houston Texans landed edge rusher Danielle Hunter despite a more lucrative offer from an AFC South rival.

Maybe edge rusher Danielle Hunter took a hometown discount after all.

The Indianapolis Colts offered Hunter more money to play for a different AFC South team, according to ESPN’s Stephen Holder before the veteran ultimately decided to take a two-year, $48 million deal with the Houston Texans.

Hunter is a Houston native who played high school in nearby Katy, Texas. He noted in his introductory press conference how his proximity to the Texans growing up played a role in shaping his NFL career. He idolized former No. 1 overall pick Mario Williams and later attended the Texans’ 2023 playoff game against the Cleveland Browns.

So while the Colts may have had a more lucrative offer on the table, Hunter appeared more excited to play in Houston with DeMeco Ryans as his head coach than play for a different AFC South team.

There has been talk all offseason that the Texans have become a destination for free agents. But this news is the first concrete example of that being true.

Hunter should form an explosive defensive line with NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Will Anderson in 2024 and give Ryans some firepower to defend the AFC South title. He’ll also get to return home for the first time since being drafted in the third round by the Minnesota Vikings in 2015.

Texans’ Danielle Hunter signing called ‘boom or bust’ by PFF

The Houston Texans made a big signing with Danielle Hunter, one that could pay off or be a bust.

The Houston Texans spent lavishly this offseason to upgrade their defensive line.

While they didn’t extend a lot of long-term contracts to free agents, general manager Nick Caserio did sign edge rusher Danielle Hunter to a two-year deal worth up to $51 million. That move replaced the younger Jonathan Greenard — who left for the Minnesota Vikings — with the more productive but older Hunter.

The move was substantial, but not a bonafide slam dunk in the eyes of Pro Football Focus. The Hunter signing was named one of the biggest “boom or bust” moves of the offseason, according to PFF’s Sam Monson, because it felt more like a “win-now” move rather than a long-term one the Texans appeared to be doing in DeMeco Ryans’ first year with the team.

“Judging by this offseason to date, that seems to have changed their strategy a little, and they have been willing to focus a little more on the now rather than the future,” Monson wrote. “… Rarely does a team voluntarily get older and more expensive at a position when the incumbent is a good player, but that’s what the Texans decided to do with Hunter. That is a risk, but it’s not exactly bringing much bust potential. The risk in Hunter is his injury history — which, to be fair, is getting further and further in the rear-view mirror.”

Hunter missed all of 2020 with a neck injury and then 10 games in 2021 with a torn pectoral injury. He played in all 17 games for the past two seasons and only missed two games in his career before 2020, both of which were in his rookie season in 2015.

The age is the only true issue, as Hunter will turn 30 in October. But that’s why Caserio only handed Hunter a two-year deal.

Hunter has been one of the most productive edge rushers since he was drafted as well. He set a career-high with 16.5 in 2023 and has 87.5 sacks for his career. The commitment is big now, but that’s what Houston needs to do to capitalize on their window with C.J. Stroud still on a rookie deal.

Broncos won’t play in NFL’s Hall of Fame Game this summer

Broncos great Randy Gradishar will be enshrined in Canton this summer, but the Broncos won’t play in the Hall of Fame Game.

The Denver Broncos will have one former player enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame this summer, but the team won’t be featured in the league’s annual Hall of Fame Game.

The Chicago Bears will face the Houston Texans in the the first game of the preseason on Thursday, Aug. 1 in Canton, Ohio.

The Bears have three players — return specialist Devin Hester, defensive lineman Steve McMichael and pass rusher Julius Peppers — set to be enshrined. The Texans, meanwhile, have wide receiver Andre Johnson as the franchise’s first-ever Hall of Famer.

After the Hall of Fame Game, the 2024 class will be enshrined on Saturday, Aug. 3. Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar was elected to this year’s class as a senior candidate.

Denver played the Atlanta Falcons in the Hall of Fame Game in 2019, kicking off the preseason with a 14-10 win. This year, the Broncos will have a set of three preseason games beginning the week of Aug. 5.

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