Texans Offered Saquon Barkley Over $11MM Per Year; Team Pursued Tony Pollard, D’Andre Swift

With C.J. Stroud committed to rookie-deal money through 2025 at the latest, the Texans possess an exceptional chance. They have a cheap quarterback who has star potential as a rookie around whom they can build. In order to take advantage of this offseason, the franchise changed course from Nick Caserio’s cautious approach to free agency over the first three years.

Denico Autry, Azeez Al-Shaair, Stefon Diggs, and Danielle Hunter were among the players the Texans added. Although Saquon Barkley and the organization expressed interest in working together, a deal between them did not materialize. Houston had also intended to add a higher-paid target at running back. Barkley signed with the Eagles on a three-year, $37.75MM contract that includes a $26MM signing bonus, even though they have Jalen Hurts on their roster for $51MM per year. Barkley, who made money after the Giants’ discussions resulted in a franchise tag and a lower offer last summer, is currently the fourth-highest paid running back in the NFL.

According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, Houston was prepared to go into this neighborhood for Barkley. The team made an offer to the two-time Pro Bowler that was slightly around $33 million for a three-year contract. The AAV here is slightly less than Barkley’s $12.58MM Philadelphia salary, but considering the assurance he had after signing with the team, it is understandable why the 2018 Offensive Rookie of the Year chose to go in the direction he did.

A handful of high-profile releases, wage reductions, or swaps have resulted from the wave of RB contracts approved in the early 2020s. Derrick Henry, Aaron Jones, Joe Mixon, Dalvin Cook, Ezekiel Elliott, and others are no longer bound to eight-figure contracts annually. Since Josh Jacobs’ Packers contract only includes $12.5MM guaranteed at signing and the perennial Pro Bowler Nick Chubb is recovering from two knee operations, the Browns cut Chubb’s salary last month. Barkley did well to score the guarantee as he entered his sixth season, considering the status of the running back position.

The 27-year-old Barkley claimed he was intrigued to the Texans before thinking about the Eagles. However, the Penn State undergrad is undoubtedly connected to Pennsylvania—a large portion of his family hails from there. The Texans backed down from Barkley even though they had the Eagles beat on cap space. The organization quickly offered a nearly fully guaranteed contract to Hunter and made an intriguing promise to Mixon. The Texans agreed to send a seventh-round pick for the seasoned back just before the Bengals were about to cut loose their seven-year starter. Mixon quickly consented to new terms with the Texans: $19.75MM ($13MM guaranteed) for two years.