The Houston Texans may get another Pro Bowl season out of Laremy Tunsil at left tackle, but they will have to incur a costly salary cap hit in 2023 to retain his services.
In the final year of Tunsil’s deal, he will count over $35.2 million against the Texans’ salary cap, according to Spotrac. If Tunsil is not playing at an All-Pro level, Houston might consider cutting Tunsil with $16.7 million lost in dead money.
That would help the Texans’ salary cap problem, but they would still have a talent deficiency along the edge.
Enter Ohio State junior offensive lineman Paris Johnson.
According to Anthony Treash from Pro Football Focus, Johnson ranks as the fifth-best tackle in college football ahead of the 2022 season.
Johnson will be moving back to tackle in 2022 after spending his debut starting season at right guard as a sophomore in 2021. Despite not playing his natural position at tackle, the 6-foot-6, 315-pound five-star recruit earned a 79.1 PFF grade that ranked 16th among Power Five guards. From Week 4 on, Johnson posted an 83.5 PFF grade that ranked seventh. He placed third in run-blocking grade and allowed just five pressures — none of which were a sack or a hit — over that nine-game span.
Johnson would provide the Texans with flexibility inside and out. If Charlie Heck, who will be entering the last year of his deal, can handle left tackle, or if the Texans want to experiment with Texas A&M’s Kenyon Green, who has such versatility, Houston can kick Johnson inside to man a guard spot. If Houston feels so bold and confident, they could start Johnson at right tackle and swing Tytus Howard over to left tackle.
If Tunsil is worth the $35.2 million, the Texans should still look at Johnson as he could immediately take over for A.J. Cann at a guard spot or develop behind Heck as the club’s new swing tackle, a situation Houston will have to address with Heck and Howard’s contracts both up at the end of the 2023 campaign.