HOUSTON – The Texans signed former Miami Dolphins and Texas Christian University safety Mark Perry, a high school classmate and friend of star quarterback C.J. Stroud, to the practice squad, per a league source.
Perry is assigned the No. 32 practice jersey. He chose the Texans’ offer over the New England Patriots, New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers and other NFL teams.
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The Texans later made this official along with wide receiver Xavier Johnson, who agreed to terms Wednesday, and also signed quarterback Kedon Slovis, offensive tackle Braeden Daniels and tight end Cole Fotheringham to the practice squad.
Slovis played collegiately at USC, Pitt and BYU, signing with the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent. The Arizona native passed for 11,689 career yards at those schools, going 28-17 as a starter. He passed for 80 career touchdowns and 39 interceptions with a 140.6 passer rating. In the preseason with the Colts, he completed 72.7 percent of his throws on 16 of 22 passing for 149 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions.
Perry, who ran a 4.37 in the 40-yard dash at the Big 12 Pro Day where he had a 37-inch vertical leap and 10-11 broad jump, visited the Indianapolis Colts and the Dallas Cowboys during the draft process and met virtually with the Texans.
Video of new #Texans practice squad safety Mark Perry @TCUFootball @VicEnwere1 @ShrineBowl @EricGalko https://t.co/CPqXEfUG4v pic.twitter.com/HqWZkjSfd6
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) August 29, 2024
The 6-foot, 213-pound Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., native, a transfer from Colorado who had three interceptions and two sacks in three seasons in Boulder, recorded 58 tackles, three for losses last season. He had 84 tackles and 6 1/2 for losses in his first season at TCU after transferring.
Perry met with several teams at the East-West Shrine Bowl all-star game.
That includes three scouts from the Texans.
Perry looked fluid in drills, drawing a lot of praise for his versatility and athleticism.
Perry met with scouts and/or personnel directors from the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, Carolina Panthers, Las Vegas Raiders, Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, Seattle Seahawks, Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos, New England Patriots, Los Angeles Chargers, Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville Jaguars, Minnesota Vikings and Miami Dolphins.
Perry led Colorado with three interceptions in his final season for the Buffaloes. He had 72 tackles and one fumble recovery.
He was named the MVP of a league championship team at Rancho Cucamonga, rushing for 905 yards and 14 touchdowns and excelling on defense. He also played wide receiver and cornerback in addition to lining up at safety.
The Texans are signing former Buffalo Bills and Ohio State wide receiver Xavier Johnson to their practice squad, per a league source.
Johnson , 25, is a 6-foot-1, 210-pound former running back who moved to wide receiver for the Buckeyes.
A former walk-on, Johnson caught 26 passes for 324 yards and two touchdowns at Ohio State. He rushed for 146 yards on 12 carries with a 71-yard run against Indiana and a touchdown against Georgia in a college football playoff semifinal. Like Perry, he is a former Stroud teammate.
Daniels is a former Washington Commanders fourth-round pick from Utah.
The Carrollton, Texas native is 6-foot-4, 297 pounds. The former All-Pac-12 selection spent last season on injured reserve with a torn rotator cuff.
Fotheringham also played at Utah, going undrafted and signed with the Las Vegas Raiders.
Fotheringham has one catch in the NFL for six yards. He was placed on injured reserve last season with a hamstring injury.
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com
