In the last two weeks, the Houston Texans have cleared almost $16.7 million in cap space.
The Houston Texans are freeing up salary space in case they decide to make a big move soon. The Texans are rearranging offensive lineman Tytus Howard’s $56 million contract, via KPRC2 Sports, in order to free up $10.3 million in salary cap room. As of April, Houston’s cap space was above $27 million.
Prior to the commencement of training camp in August of last year, Howard agreed to a three-year agreement, and his base salary was scheduled to be approximately $14 million in 2022. Roughly $12.9 million of that amount was turned into a signing bonus that the Texans could not lose. Howard’s salary cap amount has decreased from $18.71 million to $8.41 million, and his new basic salary is the $1.125 million league minimum. The Texans have exchanged money before during this offseason. Shaq Mason’s three-year agreement was reworked earlier this month by general manager Nick Caserio. Mason was rewarded with a new contract for $36 million after being traded by Tampa Bay in the previous summer. Houston freed up $6.4 million in salary cap space by converting his pay into a $8.04 million signing bonus.
The cumulative effect of the two actions has been a $16.7 million salary cap space. Now that they have the money, the Texans can make a bigger move before offseason workouts begin, centered around guys like Nico Collins and working toward a contract extension. When healthy, Howard—a former first-round selection—has been among the best right tackles in the league. He concluded 2022 with a career-best run-blocking grade of 64.5 and a pass-blocking grade of 70. 2 from Pro Football Focus.
After suffering a knee injury in the Week 12 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, Howard spent the remainder of the 2017 season on injured reserve. In addition, he missed a number of games due to a broken hand that required surgery before to the season. Houston possesses the draft capital necessary to acquire a top talent through a trade. The Texans still have two second-round selections (including No. 42), two subsequent second-round selections, and a third-round selection in the top 100 despite giving away the No. 23 pick.
