Keeping track of the Houston Texans' official roster is pretty easy. The team's official website stays mostly up-to-date, and news of roster moves makes the rounds quickly. But tracking the practice squad is another story. The flurry of roster moves, including signings, cuts and temporary activations, can get very muddy very quickly.
So here we bring you a one-stop shop for staying up-to-date on the Texans' full practice squad roster, as well as an ongoing list of all of the relevant transactions that have led to it taking this shape. We'll also answer all the key questions you might have about how the Texans' practice squad works.
Current Practice Squad Roster
- QB (0): None
- RB (2): Jawhar Jordan, Jakob Johnson (FB)
- WR (2): Jared Wayne, Josh Kelley
- TE (2): Harrison Bryant, Luke Lachey
- OT (3): Trent Brown, Jaylon Thomas, Reid Holskey
- OG (0): None
- C (1): Eli Cox
- DT (2): Junior Tafuna, Haggai Ndubuisi (International)
- EDGE (1): Soloman Byrd
- LB (2): K.C. Ossai, Jackson Woodard
- DB (2): Damon Arnette, Myles Bryant
- K/P (0): None
Reported but unofficial moves:
The Texans have reportedly added Silas Bolden (WR) and D'Angelo Ross (DB) to the practice squad, though as of publishing no official announcement or corresponding cut has been made.
Elevations Used
This section will be updated weekly to track how many practice squad elevations have been used on each player, as well as how many they have remaining.
Texans' Practice Squad Moves
September
- 9/1: Reports emerged that the Texans are signing Silas Bolden to the practice squad (unofficial)
- 9/1: Cornerback D'Angelo Russell has reportedly been re-signed to the practice squad (unofficial)
August
- 8/27: The Texans' initial practice squad was set, with signings of Damon Arnette, Trent Brown, Harrison Bryant, Myles Bryant, Solomon Byrd, Eli Cox, Jakob Johnson, Jawhar Jordan, Luke Lachey, K.C. Ossai, Junior Tafuna, Jaylon Thomas, Jared Wayne and Jackson Woodard.
- 8/27: The Texans announced the signing of Haggai Ndubuisi to their practice squad through the International Player Pathway, meaning Ndubuisi doesn't count toward their 16 practice squad spots.
- 8/28: The Texans filled their practice squad by signing Reid Holskey and Josh Kelly.
Practice Squad Rules
Roster Size
NFL teams are allowed to have 16 players on their practice squad roster. This limit was temporarily increased because of the impacts of COVID-19 on the 2020 season, but the change was kept in place permanently.
The exception to this limit is that teams may have one player from the NFL International Player Pathway program who does not count against the limit. This essentially gives teams a 17th spot. The Texans have exercised this option with Nigerian defensive tackle Haggai Ndubuisi.
Practice Squad Elevations (How They Can Play in Games)
In the usual course, a practice squad player can not suit up for a team on gameday. This is the main distinction between how an active roster spot and a practice squad roster spot works. But there are certain exceptions, called "elevations" that you will hear about throughout the season.
Every week, teams can "elevate" up to two practice squad players to be available on their active gameday roster. (To get technical, teams can expand their roster on gameday from 53 to 55 players with two from the practice squad. The practice squad additions could legally be kept inactive by leaving them off the official 48-man roster for the game).
Each practice squad player can only be elevated three times during the season. If teams want to elevate the player again, they must be officially signed onto the active roster before the game (meaning a corresponding cut must also be made).
Can Other Teams Sign the Texans' Practice Squad Players?
Practice squad players are eligible to sign with any of the other 31 teams in the NFL — provided they are being signed directly to that team's active roster. So, for example, if the Colts wanted to they could sign a Texans practice squad player directly to their 53-man roster. They could not, however, sign that player to their own practice squad.
Do Practice Squad Players Make the NFL Minimum Salary?
No, NFL practice squad players make significantly less than the NFL minimum salary of $885,000 per year.
NFL practice squad player pay varies, but they make significantly less than the NFL minimum salary. All players on the practice squad with two or fewer years of experience make the same salary, which is set at $13,000 per week during the 2025 NFL season (and which is set to climb by $750 per week each year through 2030).
Players with more than two years' experience are able to negotiate specific deals within a set range of minimum and maximum amounts that are laid out yearly by the collective bargaining agreement. For the 2025 season, this minimum is $17,500 per week and the maximum is $22,000 per week.
For comparison, the "game check" for an NFL-minimum $885k salary would be more than twice the practice squad maximum, at $49,167.