Houston Texans have waived left tackle Matt Kalil from the 53 man roster.
The Houston Texans made an expected move after acquiring left tackle Laremy Tunsil in a blockbuster trade with the Miami Dolphins by waiving Matt Kalil from their initial 53 man roster. Field Yates of ESPN reported the move on Sunday afternoon, and releasing Kalil will free up $5.25 million in cap space after he was signed to a $7.5 million deal with $2.25 million guaranteed.
Kalil being brought in the offseason to be the starter was a dubious move to solve the Texans’ woes at left tackle after having several injuries in the past that limited him from playing through the whole season at a productive level.
The former fourth overall pick of the 2012 NFL Draft had his fair share of injuries that kept him off the field and miss 18 games in the last three seasons. A foot injury that he suffered in training camp with the Texans was not going to help him make his case to make the final roster with other players rising to the occasion in his absence.
Kalil’s signing was always viewed as a short term addition and with Brian Gaine being relieved from his duties at general manager; it was going to take a near-perfect performance through training camp to keep him on the roster.
Roderick Johnson was one of the players that looked comfortable in the left side of offensive line throughout the preseason for a fraction of the cost it was going to require the Texans to keep Kalil on the roster for the 2019 season.
Texans will be moving forward Seantrel Henderson, Tunsil, and Johnson at the tackle position for their first game of the regular season against the New Orleans Saints.