The Houston Texans linebackers from 2021 are running it back in 2022.
Who would have seen this coming? First, Christian Kirksey re-signed with Houston. Kamu Grugier-Hill followed suit. Now, it’s Neville Hewitt re-joining the squad for another run. Drew Rosenhaus, Hewitt’s agent, announced the move on Twitter which was then echoed by Adam Schefter.
Hewitt played in all 17 games but started only five of them. He recorded 60 tackles, with 37 of them being solo tackles. He did not record a sack or interception. In terms of pass coverage, he allowed nine passes out of 11 (9/11) for 99 yards, zero touchdowns allowed, and a completion percentage of 81.8 percent.
According to Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network, it’s a one-year deal.
Free-agent linebacker Neville Hewitt has agreed to a one-year deal to return to the Houston Texans, per his agent @DrewJRosenhaus.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 26, 2022
Houston Texans bringing back so many linebackers draws memories of a former coach.
Back when Bill O’Brien was the head coach of the Texans, O’Brien had an obsession with bringing in tight ends- no matter how much the team already had, it seemed like there were always more of them coming in. Nick Caserio’s version of that is with linebackers, and especially ones who will take a cheap deal.
Whether this is to have as much cap space as possible or a strategic move to have linebackers on the roster who already know Lovie Smith’s system will remain to be seen. Smith is banking on these three linebackers to anchor the defense and help get the ball back into Davis Mills’ hands. This move also shuts down any chance of a linebacker being taken in the first or second round.
Neville previously spent time with the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins. He was an undrafted free agent that did enough to sign with the Dolphins.