The Houston Texans added a veteran to shore up their defensive line during the first wave of free agency when they added former Tennessee Titans defender Denico Autry.
The 34-year-old veteran will join the Texans on a two-year, $21.5 million deal, a little less than half of which is fully guaranteed. More details have since come out on Autry’s contract breakdown. Here they are, courtesy of Over The Cap:
- Terms: two years, $21.5 million
- Guaranteed money: $10.5 million
- Signing bonus: $6 million
- 2024 base salary: $4.5 million (fully guaranteed)
- 2024 cap hit: $8 million
- 2025 base salary: $8.5 million
- 2025 cap hit: $12 million
- Annual active roster bonus: $500,000
Autry can play all over the line and brings 142 career games to the Texans. He finished with a career-best 11.5 sacks this past season. Autry, alongside edge rushers Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. should help DeMeco Ryans build one of the most explosive defensive lines in the NFL for this upcoming season.
Houston still needs to solve its defensive tackle issue, though. After the Texans traded away Maliek Collins and let Sheldon Rankins walk, the team only has free-agent signings Tim Settle Jr. and Foley Fatukasi as well as re-signed backup Khalil Davis. There are other defensive tackles available in free agency, and the draft is a solid spot as well for Houston to add to the line after it acquired the No. 42 pick from Minnesota Vikings in a trade on Friday.
