INDIANAPOLIS – Laremy Tunsil stonewalled pass rushers all season, and the veteran left tackle earned Pro Bowl status for the third time as the highest-ranked pass blocker in the NFL.
Tunsil allowed just one sack all season.
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Right tackle Tytus Howard punished defensive linemen with his trademark physical style, and yielded just three sacks overall.
Together, Tunsil and Howard have formed one of the top offensive tackle tandems in the league.
Although the Texans are coming off a 3-13-1 season that triggered the dismissal of coach Lovie Smith and have obvious roster needs at quarterback and other spots, the tackle position is fortified with Tunsil and Howard.
That’s one of the most talented and stable positions on the roster as both players are under contract heading into next season.
“I think it helps when you have two good tackles,” new Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said at the NFL scouring combine. “Laremy is one of the top tackles in this league, top left tackles. Very athletic guy, dependable guy. Tytus is a young player who’s coming along doing a really good job. So, it helps when you when you have bookends.”
#Texans coach DeMeco Ryans on 'bookend' tackles Laremy Tunsil @KingTunsil78 and Tytus Howard @tyhoward71 @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/2xVHpnh5hw
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) March 1, 2023
Tunsil wants to break new ground in the elite offensive tackle market and, once again, become the highest paid offensive tackle in NFL history. Originally signed to a three-year, $66 million contract after being acquired in a trade from the Miami Dolphins, Tunsil wants to top San Francisco 49ers lineman Trent Williams’ $23.01 million average with a blockbuster contract extension this offseason. Tunsil views himself as a valuable insurance policy who keeps the quarterback safe and standing. With quarterback salaries skyrocketing -- Aaron Rodgers ($50.3 million), Russell Wilson ($49 million), Kyler Murray ($46.1 million) and Deshaun Watson ($230 million fully guaranteed, $46 million average) -- the tackle market is also expected to keep rising. That could mean, if the Texans are amenable to writing a large check, to an expensive deal for Tunsil that could potentially fall into the $24 million to $25 million per year neighborhood.
Although Texans general manager Nick Caserio was noncommittal Tuesday at the NFL scouting combine on whether a lucrative contract extension is in the offing, he emphasized there’s been a respectful dialogue.
“Laremy’s been a good player in this league for a long time,” Caserio said. “He’s done a lot of good things for our team. I think each individual player, when the time comes, and it’s appropriate to have any conversations, we’ll go ahead and do that. A lot of respect for Laremy, we’ve had good conversations along the way.
“We’ll see how it goes here in the offseason, but Laremy has expressed his sentiments about wanting to be here in Houston. We’ll see if it works itself out the way everybody would like it to.”
There haven’t been any contract talks this offseason between Tunsil and the Texans, per league sources, who emphasized there’s mutual interest in working something out.
The Texans have $36.3 million in salary cap space in 2023, ranking fifth in the NFL. Tunsil has a $35.2 million salary cap figure, and that can be lowered through an extension by prorating his money and adding more years to amortize his salary cap impact.
The Texans also are contemplating whether they’ll work on an extension for right tackle Tytus Howard, who’s due a $13.2 million fifth-year option in the final year of the former first-round draft pick’s rookie contract.
Tunsil wants to help transform the Texans into a winning program and, one day, conclude his career with the AFC South franchise.
“I want to turn this program around,” Tunsil told KPRC 2 at the close of the season. “That’s what I want: to turn this organization around from a losing organization into a winning organization. I want to finish my career here in Houston.”
“That would mean a lot to me to reset the market,” Tunsil said. “Absolutely, you have to have insurance. You have to protect the quarterback. You have to pay left tackles.”
Tunsil, who doesn’t have an agent and helped negotiate his original contract with the Texans with the advice and counsel of advisors Saint Omni and Laolu Sanni, hopes to talk with Caserio to get the conversation started toward this offseason goal.
“Plant the seed and see where we go from here,” Tunsil said.
Tunsil was the highest graded pass blocker in the NFL with a 90.9 Pro Football Focus analytics grade.
Named to the Pro Bowl again, Tunsil expressed confidence in his game and where he stacks up around the league.
“Don’t doubt me,” he said. “That was the main thing that motivated me the whole entire season. They see that I’m LT1. They see I’m the best left tackle in the league.”
Although the Texans already have Howard under contract through the 2023 season under a $13.2 million fifth-year club option they exercised last year, ideally, they would extend him on a long-term deal.
“Mosly likely this offseason, go ahead and get it done,” Howard said. “We haven’t started yet, but, hopefully, we can work toward getting something done. The sooner, the better. A shared goal. I want to finish my career here.”
The most expensive right tackle contracts in the NFL include the New Orleans Saints’ Ryan Ramczyk ($96 million total, $19.2 million a year), the Minnesota Vikings’ Brian O’Neill ($92.5 million total, $18.5 million a year), the Philadelphia Eagles’ Lane Johnson ($72 million, $18 million per year), the Indianapolis Colts’ Braden Smith ($70 million, $17.5 million per year) and the Carolina Panthers’ Taylor Moton ($85 million, $17 million per year).
It’s unclear how the Texans will approach a potential negotiation with Howard. Could the Texans do both deals this offseason? Possibly. Or perhaps Caserio will wait on one or even both and let the respective situations play out. It’s yet to be determined.
“Got to keep us together, you got to,” Howard said. “We’re the best tandem in the league. It’s not even a debate.”
Howard played 997 snaps last season and allowed just three sacks. He had a 70.2 Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade with nine penalties, five quarterback hits allowed and 38 total pressures, per the analytics site.
He stepped in at left guard when rookie Kenyon Green was sidelined with an ankle injury. Primarily, though, Howard played his natural right tackle spot.
A former high school quarterback and walk-on who gained 100 pounds to emerge as an NFL draft prospect and Senior Bowl all-star game standout, Howard is a former all-rookie selection.
To play his preferred position was significant for Howard.
“It helped me a lot that I was able to play one position most of the season,” he said. “I felt this was my best year. I’m looking forward to building off that. It’s been a grind. They believed in me to play right tackle again. I stepped forward and got the job done at a high level. "
Howard thoroughly enjoyed playing with this configuration of players as the line formed a close bond with regular dinners, including a recent hearty meal at Prime 112 in Miami, Fla., paid for by Green.
“This is a good group, the best group I’ve played in,” Howard said. “I love these guys, closest group I’ve ever been on.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com
