Texans To Re-Sign G Ed Ingram
One of the many notable guards on track for free agency will not be testing the market. Ed Ingram will instead remain in place with the Texans.
Team and player have agreed to a three-year, $37.5MM deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. That includes $20MM fully guaranteed, with KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson adding Ingram will receive a $14MM signing bonus. Offensive line additions will remain something to watch for in Houston’s case, but stability at one guard spot will be seen in 2026.
Ingram, whom the Vikings chose in the second round of the 2022 draft, was a full-time starter over his first two years. He fell out of favor in Minnesota in 2024, when he started in just nine of 16 appearances. The Vikings benched Ingram for good heading into Week 10. They shipped the Texas native to Houston for a sixth-round pick a year ago.
Ingram rebounded as a full-time starter in Houston, where he lined up at right guard during a 14-game, 1,072-snap campaign. Pro Football Focus ranked the 27-year-old’s performance 12th among 79 qualifying guards. He was especially effective as a run blocker (seventh overall), which bodes well for newly acquired RB David Montgomery.
Retaining Ingram is the second significant move the Texans have made along their offensive line this month. The club previously traded guard/tackle Tytus Howard to the Browns, leaving a void up front.
Connor Byrne contributed to this post.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/8/26
We have some rare Sunday minor moves as the NFL closes in on the start of the new league year and the free agency frenzy that is sure to follow:
Denver Broncos
- Re-signed: TE Nate Adkins
Houston Texans
- Re-signed: DT Naquan Jones
The Broncos continue to be proactive with pending RFA and ERFAs. Adkins was set to become a restricted free agent, but Denver has avoided that conclusion by re-signing him before the start of free agency.
Claimed last year in Houston, Jones is reportedly getting a one-year, $2MM deal to stay with the Texans, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Jones can earn another $500k on the new deal through incentives.
2026 NFL Trades
The modern NFL features four clear trade windows. Early March, the draft, the late-August 53-man roster-setting date and the November deadline reside as the primary points trades occur around the league. As the NFL resides in window No. 1 for 2026, it is a good time to check in on what has already transpired on the market.
Excluding pick-for-pick trades, here are the moves NFL teams have made thus far in 2026:
March 2
- Browns to acquire OL Tytus Howard from Texans for No. 140
- Texans to obtain RB David Montgomery from Lions for OL Juice Scruggs, No. 128, 2027 seventh-round pick
March 4
- Rams to acquire CB Trent McDuffie from Chiefs for Nos. 29, 168, 210, 2027 third-round pick
March 5
- Bills to add WR D.J. Moore, No. 164 from Bears in exchange for No. 60
March 6
- Bears to acquire C Garrett Bradbury from Patriots for 2027 fifth-round pick
- Ravens to land OLB Maxx Crosby from Raiders for No. 14, 2027 first-round pick
Ravens nixed trade March 10, failing Crosby on a physical
March 7
- Packers to add LB Zaire Franklin from Colts for DT Colby Wooden
March 8
- Raiders to obtain CB Taron Johnson, 2026 seventh-round pick from Bills for 2026 sixth-rounder
March 9
- Jets to acquire S Minkah Fitzpatrick from Dolphins for 2026 seventh-round pick
- Cowboys to land OLB Rashan Gary from Packers for 2027 fourth-round pick
- Steelers to add WR Michael Pittman Jr., 2026 seventh-round pick from Colts for 2026 sixth-rounder
March 10
- Jets to acquire QB Geno Smith, 2026 seventh-round pick from Raiders for 2026 sixth-rounder
- Texans to obtain P Kai Kroeger, 2028 seventh-round pick from Saints for 2028 sixth-rounder
March 11
- Titans to add DL Solomon Thomas, No. 225 from Cowboys for No. 218
- 49ers to acquire DT Osa Odighizuwa from Cowboys for No. 92
Mutual Extension Interest Between Texans, Azeez Al-Shaair; Sheldon Rankins Re-Signing On Radar
Azeez Al-Shaair‘s reunion with DeMeco Ryans has helped the Texans become one of the NFL’s best defenses. Leading the way in EPA per play last season, Houston has a Will Anderson Jr. extension on the radar. The team is also eyeing a second Al-Shaair agreement.
The former Ryans 49ers charge is entering the final season of a three-year, $34MM contract, and KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson notes mutual interest in an extension is believed to exist. The Texans have already been active on the extension front, giving one-year bumps to Danielle Hunter and Dalton Schultz. A re-up would reduce Al-Shaair’s $15.24MM 2026 cap number.
[RELATED: Assessing Texans’ Offseason Outlook]
The hard-hitting linebacker would be likely to sign a multiyear extension, as opposed to the one-year deals Hunter and Schultz did. Al-Shaiir, 28, has anchored Houston’s defensive second level since signing as a free agent in 2024. Missing six games in 2024 (three due to a suspension for a hit on Trevor Lawrence), Al-Shaair tallied 103 tackles and nine passes defensed last season. Pro Football Focus ranked him 17th among linebackers.
An update to the linebacker market is expected early this week, with Devin Lloyd and Quay Walker hitting free agency. Al-Shaair is currently tied to the No. 8 off-ball linebacker AAV. Probably not a candidate to rival where Roquan Smith and ex-49ers teammate Fred Warner reside, Al-Shaair will be able to command a raise. The level Nick Bolton and Jamien Sherwood reached on this day last year ($15MM per) would seemingly be realistic.
Houston is also interested in re-signing defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, who fared better last season after struggling in Cincinnati. Part of Ryans’ defense in 2023 and ’25, Rankins scored two touchdowns last season — the second in the Texans’ wild-card rout in Pittsburgh. Rankins will turn 32 next month; he is coming off a three-sack season that featured five tackles for loss. The former first-round pick has proven a fit under Ryans, starting 17 games last season.
Elsewhere on the Texans’ defense, Wilson indicates Denico Autry has not made a retirement call yet. The 12-year veteran will turn 36 in July. Autry played in 12 games last season, recording 3.5 sacks. Autry is unsigned for 2026.
Wilson adds the Texans will likely adjust David Montgomery‘s contract soon. Houston added Montgomery before cutting Joe Mixon. Upon acquiring Mixon via trade in 2024, the Texans gave him a two-year deal worth $19.75MM. Montgomery has two years left on his Lions-designed extension (two years, $18.25MM). While Montgomery’s cap number is only $6MM, no guarantees remain on his contract. The Texans’ extension interest indicates they view this trade as more than a one-year rental.
Montgomery’s arrival points Nick Chubb out the door, and Wilson adds Christian Kirk and Christian Harris are also likely not coming back. Ed Ingram could be priced out of the Texans’ comfort zone. Despite being demoted by the Vikings before they unloaded him for a low-level trade return, Wilson adds Ingram’s price could reach $15MM per year in free agency. The Texans, who traded sporadic guard option Tytus Howard to the Browns, have shown interest in retaining Ingram but perhaps not at that price.
Lastly, the Texans made an addition to their coaching staff recently. They hired Tiquan Underwood as their assistant wide receivers coach, Wilson tweets. Underwood, a former NFL wideout, spent last season as the Cowboys’ assistant WRs coach.
NFL Restructures: Singletary, Stingley, Packers, Banks, Bills, Browns, Jaguars
Teams need to move under the $301.2MM salary ceiling by 3pm CT Wednesday, and many will be completing restructures to create funds ahead of Monday’s legal tampering period. Here are the latest moves clubs have made to clear cap space:
- Devin Singletary loomed as a cut candidate, as the Giants have been linked to a Kenneth Walker pursuit. But the veteran running back is accepting a notable pay cut to stay. Singletary agreed to reduce his salary from $5MM to $1.3MM, according to ESPN.com’s Jordan Raanan. The former Bills and Texans starter has been a role player in New York, being usurped by both Tyrone Tracy and Cam Skattebo. But it looks like Singletary will be staying on the roster after this change, which Raanan indicates also comes with a $1MM incentive package.
- The Texans created roughly $20MM in cap space by moving the majority of Derek Stingley Jr.‘s $21.59MM 2026 base salary into a bonus, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson reports. This move, which will inflate future cap hits on Stingley’s three-year, $90MM extension, has slid Houston past $33MM in cap room as of Sunday afternoon. Also contributing to that total: a Jalen Pitre restructure, per Wilson. The versatile DB’s base salary is at the veteran minimum, freeing up nearly $9MM.
- Tied to a four-year, $77MM Packers deal, Aaron Banks will see his contract restructured as well. It is not known how much cap space the Packers will save here, but ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes the team is adjusting Banks’ 2026 numbers to create room. This will make a future release a bit more difficult while freeing up funds now.
- Taking on D.J. Moore‘s salary in a trade with the Bears, the Bills are still nearly $13MM over the cap. They continue to move toward the limit, though, with OverTheCap’s Jason Fitzgerald noting Ed Oliver‘s deal has been restructured. That move creates more than $10MM in space.
- The Browns have been known to adjust a contract or two under GM Andrew Berry, who has completed four restructures on the disastrous Deshaun Watson deal. They are restructuring Denzel Ward‘s contract, but it is a limited change. This move will only bring Ward’s cap hit down $2MM, per Fitzgerald. It still sits at $30.89MM — second-highest on the team. Cleveland is using Ward’s $2.5MM roster bonus to make the conversion.
- The Jaguars adjusted three deals to create space recently. Patrick Mekari, Eric Murray and Jourdan Lewis‘ 2026 salaries have been reduced via simple restructures, according to Fitzgerald, Spotrac and the Florida Times-Union’s Ryan O’Halloran. The Mekari and Murray move created $10.72MM in cap space, per Fitzgerald. The Lewis restructure adds $7.7MM to that total. The Jags are barely $100K under the cap, however.
Texans To Re-Sign LB E.J. Speed
The Texans are re-signing linebacker and special teams ace E.J. Speed, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. He will receive a two-year deal worth up to $13MM with $7.5MM in guaranteed money, which includes a $4MM signing bonus.
Speed’s new contract represents a strong raise after a successful debut year in Houston. He signed for $3.5MM last offseason (via OverTheCap) and appeared in 16 games with a 44% snap share on defense and a core role on special teams. The 30-year-old was a key part of the Texans’ league-leading defense, recording a 9.6% run stop rate that ranked fifth among all linebackers with at least 150 run defense snaps, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
Originally a Colts fifth-round pick in 2019, Speed earned a roster spot as a special teams ace and began to see more time on defense in 2021. He re-signed with the team on a two-year, $8MM deal in 2023 and stepped into a starting role. The following year, he played nearly every snap in 2024 and ranked second on the team and 12th in the league with 142 tackles.
Despite that, Indianapolis did not re-sign Speed for a second time last offseason. He stayed in the AFC South and landed in Houston, where he served as the No. 3 linebacker behind Azeez Al-Shaair and Henry To’oTo’o. Speed will continue in that role in 2026 as the Texans attempt to repeat their incredible defensive performance during the 2025 season.
Speed is the third Texan to sign a new contract this week. The team re-signed offensive tackle Trent Brown and extended edge rusher Danielle Hunter on Thursday, taking care of two of their top offseason priorities. Other key pending free agents include right guard Ed Ingram and defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins. With more than $30MM in cap space (pending Speed’s exact contract details), Houston has enough money to pursue new contacts with both players (or any others set to hit the market), though they may also want to pursue upgrades in free agency. They also have to budget for long-term deals with Will Anderson and C.J. Stroud, who will both become eligible for an extension this offseason.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/6/26
Here are today’s NFL minor moves as we head into the final weekend before the start of free agency:
Denver Broncos
- Re-signed: RB Tyler Badie, DT Jordan Jackson, S Devon Key, OLB Dondrea Tillman
Houston Texans
- Re-signed: S M.J. Stewart
Los Angeles Chargers
- Re-signed: RB Jaret Patterson, S Kendall Williamson
New York Giants
- Released: T James Hudson
Washington Commanders
- Re-signed: K Jake Moody
Initially opening the season as a starter on the line in New York in place of Andrew Thomas, Hudson was benched after struggling in a first-string role. He had been signed to serve as a swing tackle for the Giants, but after his early-season struggles, he failed to see much playing time for the remainder of the season.
After getting waived by the team that drafted him in the third round, Moody landed on the Bears’ practice squad before the Commanders signed him to their active roster. Washington made the move after watching Moody connect on eight of nine field goal attempts in two games for Chicago then watched Moody convert 10 of 11 for their team over the final six weeks of the season. Not willing to pay the prices on a restricted free agent tender, the Commanders opted not to tender him but continued on the path to a new deal as an unrestricted free agent.
Texans To Extend TE Dalton Schultz
Less than 24 hours after agreeing to a one-year extension with Danielle Hunter, the Texans have a deal in place with Dalton Schultz. Like Hunter, it is a one-year bump.
Schultz is extending his contract through 2027 at a rate of $12.6MM, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports. Between the 2026 and ’27 seasons, Schultz is now due $17.6MM guaranteed. Schultz is heading into his fourth Texans season, and this extension positions the former Cowboys draftee to play a fifth in Houston. This move comes hours after the Texans created $8MM in cap space by releasing Joe Mixon.
[RELATED: Texans To Acquire David Montgomery From Lions]
Initially joining the Texans on a midlevel deal (one year, $6.25MM), Schultz impressed in C.J. Stroud‘s rookie season and reupped on an upper-crust pact (3/36). That came shortly before free agency in 2024. Two years later, Schultz became a Texans priority again after another strong season.
Catching a career-high 82 passes, Schultz totaled 777 yards and three touchdowns last season. While the former fourth-rounder’s yards-per-reception number dropped to 9.5 — his first such season since 2020 — Schultz operated as Stroud’s No. 2 target behind Nico Collins during a season in which Houston again featured a subaverage ground attack.
Schultz, 30 in July, was set to carry a $15.9MM cap number in 2026. That will drop thanks to this extension. Should Schultz play out this deal, he will have split his career into five-year runs with Dallas and Houston. The Cowboys turned to Schultz after their Blake Jarwin extension did not pan out, with the former ultimately becoming the team’s Jason Witten successor. The Cowboys prioritized Schultz via a franchise tag in 2022, but like Mike Gesicki in Miami, no extension came to pass before that July’s deadline. A disagreement on term length between Schultz and the Cowboys led him to the market in 2023, and he has not tested it since.
While Schultz’s career-best yardage season remains his 808-yard 2021 in Dallas, he put up 635 yards in his Houston debut to help Stroud to Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. After a 535-yard 2024, the pass-catching tight end bounced back to help the team return to the divisional round in 2025. The Texans are a defense-powered operation, but they now have Schultz and Collins signed beyond 2026. Those deals pair with the team’s pair of Iowa State-developed wideouts — Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel; both players are tied to rookie contracts through 2028.
Texans To Release RB Joe Mixon
Days after agreeing to acquire David Montgomery from the Lions, the Texans are moving on from their previous running back trade pickup. Joe Mixon is out, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Considering Mixon missed all of 2025 with an undisclosed injury, this move was expected. The nine-year veteran’s career may be in jeopardy at this point. Mixon underwent surgery recently; his timetable is unknown. This release will come with a non-football injury designation, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero.
Mixon requested the release, Schefter adds, and the move will save the Texans $8MM in cap space. With Montgomery arriving as a younger option to pair with Woody Marks, Mixon was almost definitely headed out of town regardless of a release request.
The Bengals were close to releasing Mixon in 2024, but the Texans came in with a late trade offer — a seventh-round pick — for the longtime Cincinnati starter. Houston then extended Mixon on a two-year, $19.75MM deal. That contract included $13MM guaranteed at signing, representing a nice landing for the veteran RB after he had accepted a Cincy pay cut in 2023.
The 2024 season — which featured several relocated veterans making impacts at running back — brought success for Mixon, who totaled 1,016 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns in 14 games. This earned the former second-round pick a Pro Bowl invite, as the Texans returned to the divisional round. But Mixon’s Houston tenure changed last year, when a foot injury sidelined him ahead of training camp. The Texans placed Mixon on the reserve/NFI list to start the season and never activated him.
It is still not known how or when Mixon suffered the injury, but he was never designated for return from the NFI list. GM Nick Caserio said (via KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson) Mixon did not sustain the injury away from football activities. Though, landing on the NFI list meant the Oklahoma alum was injured away from official Texans workouts. The injury occurred before the summer, with Mixon in a walking boot last spring. That prompted the Texans to sign Nick Chubb, who played on a one-year, $2.5MM deal.
This saga steadily brought negative updates for Mixon. At first, he was to miss multiple weeks of training camp. He then landed on the reserve/NFI list to mandate a four-game absence. Reports then pegged the former Bengals extension recipient may miss all of 2025. By season’s end, Mixon’s NFL future was viewed as uncertain.
Mixon, who has five 1,000-yard rushing seasons on his resume, pursued nonsurgical options last year, according to Wilson. No disclosure was necessary due to Mixon never appearing on an injury report last year, but Wilson adds the team honored Mixon’s request for privacy regarding the ailment.
Texans To Extend DE Danielle Hunter
For a second straight offseason, Danielle Hunter will extend his Houston stay by a year. The Texans are giving the Pro Bowl defensive end a one-year extension, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson reports.
Hunter agreed to a one-year, $40.1MM deal, per Wilson. This comes a year after the Will Anderson Jr. bookend inked a one-year, $35.6MM pact. This agreement, which includes a $30.7MM signing bonus (per NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero), pushes Hunter’s Texans tie through the 2027 season.
This marks Hunter’s third Texans agreement. The team gave the longtime Vikings edge rusher a two-year, $49MM deal that came almost fully guaranteed in 2024. Hunter rewarded the Texans’ investment, as Houston and Minnesota essentially traded edges (with Jonathan Greenard signing with the Vikings), and has since earned two extensions. This deal stands to reduce Hunter’s 2026 cap number — previously at $31.3MM.
The latest Hunter agreement includes a favorable structure. Hunter will see his 2027 base salary ($30.2MM) come fully guaranteed, with Wilson indicating his money is locked in. This represents a win for Hunter, who has opted to go year-to-year past age 30. The youngest player in NFL history to reach 50 sacks, Hunter will turn 33 in October.
Building a Hall of Fame case since coming back from an injury-plagued stretch in the early 2020s, Hunter has been a key part of what has become a formidable Texans defense. The former third-round pick has recorded 27 sacks as a Texan, playing in every Houston game since signing. This included a 15-sack 2025 season, a campaign that earned him second-team All-Pro honors. With Anderson landing on the All-Pro first team, Houston has assembled one of the top edge-rushing duos in recent NFL history.
Coming back from a season-nullifying neck injury (2020) and a pectoral malady that limited him (2021), Hunter has tallied between 22 and 23 QB hits each season from 2022-25. He ripped off a career-high 16.5 as a Viking in 2023, providing considerable momentum into free agency. Hunter had been tied to a below-market contract since 2018, and a Vikes rework meant he could not be franchise-tagged in 2024, leading to a Colts-Texans bidding war. While Indianapolis was believed to have offered more money in total, Houston won out with a $48MM guarantee at signing. The addition has bolstered DeMeco Ryans‘ defense.
When first signed, it looked like the Texans would use Hunter’s contract to complement the rookie deals of Anderson and C.J. Stroud. But Nick Caserio‘s decision to extend him in 2025 turned this into a longer-term partnership. Although Hunter is approaching his mid-30s, he has been a dominant player in Houston.
In the sack era (1982-present), only 26 players have more QB drops than Hunter. The 12th-year veteran has 114.5 despite missing a full season. Hunter is 24 sacks away from the top 10 all time. While keeping up that pace may be a tall order, Hunter has seven double-digit sack seasons on his resume.
Born in Jamaica, Hunter grew up in the Houston area. He replaced Greenard as Anderson’s older sidekick, and the Texans’ defense benefited. Houston ended last season ranked second in scoring defense and first in EPA per play. The unit smothered the Steelers in the wild-card round, rampaging to a 30-6 win, before seeing Stroud struggles in the divisional round bring a defense-powered season to a close.
With Caserio and Co. expected to discuss an extension with Anderson this offseason, Stroud is on track to remain tied to his rookie deal in 2026. Hunter’s accord is the NFL’s fifth $40MM-per-year defender deal, following Myles Garrett, T.J. Watt, Micah Parsons and Aidan Hutchinson. This is a unique pact, however, as the rest of those contracts covered at least three years in length.