M.J. Stewart -Safety
This one hurts. M.J. Stewart has shown himself to be a good coverage safety in the past and has the ability to stick a tackle. Yet, he's been inconsistently used while with the Houston Texans. He had a good 2022 despite not playing as much as he should have, playing in all 17 games but not starting once. Stewart would start one game in 2023 but would only play in six total. Despite that, he was easily the best tackling defensive back the Texans had. Despite that, it could be time to say goodbye to him.
Stewart is in the final year of his contract and cutting him could save the team over $2.6 million in cap space this year, and in doing so free up some space for the recently drafted rookies. The team did just draft two new defensive backs, corner Kamari Lassiter and safety Calen Bullock, two guys expected to push for not just playing time but starting positions on the team's depth chart.
Stewart should be kept, he's a good player and arguably better than any defensive back from the 2023 roster save for Derek Stingley, but he's among the older, higher-paid players at the position, so he's sadly the most likely to go.