In order to reduce their roster down to 53 players, the Texans announced the following transactions today:
Released:
CB Bryce Hall
LB Caleb Johnson
DT Naquan Jones
WR Zay Jones
TE Brevin Jordan
S George Odum
DE Dominique Robinson
QB Brett Rypien (story)
WR Sterling Shepard
WR Justin Watson
Waived/injured:
DE Solomon Byrd
DT Kyonte Hamilton
Waived:
DT Dominic Bailey
WR Lewis Bond
CB Brandon Codrington
C Eli Cox
TE Louis Hansen
LB Jamal Hill
CB Alijah Huzzie
RB Jawhar Jordan
WR Josh Kelly
T Jarrett Kingston
S Kaevon Merriweather
T James Neal III
DE Derek Parish
WR Treyvhon Saunders
WR Daniel Sobkowicz
RB Deuce Vaughn
RB Noah Whittington
RB Owen Wright
Placed on IR (designated to return):
WR Tank Dell
S Ja’Marcus Ingram
Placed on IR:
DE Ali Gaye
Placed on reserve/PUP:
LB E.J. Speed
S M.J. Stewart
After cutting Rypien, the Texans will play the 2026 season with only two passers on the roster, C.J. Stroud and Davis Mills. With Jordan and Vaughn getting waived, only three rushers — David Montgomery, Woody Marks, and British Brooks — remain on the roster. Houston took a swing on veteran wideouts Jones, Shepard, and Watson, but ultimately, the team will rely on its previous draft picks and recent trade acquisition Kayshon Boutte.
It appears the Texans ran out of patience for Jordan, the tight end out of Miami (FL). In five years in Houston, he only appeared in 36 of a possible 85 games. On the topic of injuries, Gaye joins four others on the full-season injured reserve, while Dell, Ingram, Speed, and Stewart will be able to return to the team in Week 5 or later.
Though the Texans missed on Bond, a sixth-round pick this year out of Boston College, they impressively landed three undrafted rookies on their initial active roster. On offense, South Dakota State offensive tackle Sam Hagen made the team, and on defense, NC State defensive end Sebastian Harsh and Stanford cornerback Collin Wright made the 53-man roster after getting passed over in the draft.