The Texans entered this offseason with one major need, and that was to fix the offensive line immediately. Those upgrades could have come through free agency, the trade market, or even the draft, but after the slew of moves from the front office throughout the last couple of weeks, it is clear that the plan was to bring in experienced players and build that way.
It all started with the re-signing of their lone bright spot on the interior last season, Ed Ingram. Ingram was signed to a three-year, $37.5M deal. They clearly valued Ingram and feel like his best ball is ahead of him.
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Houston also prioritized re-signing another one of their own, offensive tackle Trent Brown. Brown started a lot of games for them last season and was extremely valuable for his price tag. He will be back on a one-year deal worth up to $7M.
Some believed they viewed Brown as their right tackle heading into the 2026 season, and while you could do much worse than Brown, it was clear the team wanted a real upgrade. That’s why they went out and paid former Colts right tackle Braden Smith.
Smith was one of, if not the best offensive tackle available, and Houston got their guy, giving him a two-year deal worth up to $25M. Smith has been banged up the past couple of years, but he is someone who can make a real difference when healthy and operating at full capacity.
It felt like fans were already feeling good about the offensive line group, and the most recent signing put them over the edge. They agreed to terms with former All-Pro guard Wyatt Teller. Teller is someone Houston has been interested in for years, and they finally got him on the squad on a two-year, $16M contract.
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NFL reporter Aaron Wilson said that quarterback C.J. Stroud did some recruiting on his end to get Teller to lean toward Houston, and it worked out.
The Texans did not have to go all out in free agency. They could have signed a couple of offensive linemen and taken their chances filling out the rest of the openings in the draft, but they made it a priority and made sure to get their guys.
Stroud needs to have a great year in order to receive a contract extension in Houston, and it feels like they set him up on paper to have real success up front in both the pass and run game.
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