Houston Texans add solid veteran pass-catcher with signing of former Chiefs tight end

The Houston Texans are already replete with weapons on offense surrounding a burgeoning star at quarterback in C.J. Stroud. On Tuesday, they added even more depth and talent at the tight end position with the signing of former Kansas City Chiefs tight end Irv Smith Jr.

Smith will sign with the team's practice squad per NFL reporter Aaron Wilson.

The Houston Texans bolstered their practice squad on Tuesday evening with the signing of Irv Smith Jr.

Smith will be a very familiar face to Chiefs Kingdom after trying his best to make the team as a fourth tight end this offseason. The Chiefs signed him to a single-season deal in free agency as a third veteran to compete behind Travis Kelce and Noah Gray, and it looked like the team might have a nice pass-catching option at TE3 in place.

From there, however, the Chiefs muddied the waters with stronger competition by grabbing Jared Wiley in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. The TCU product turned enough heads in the offseason to grab the third tight end spot and it felt like Smith was on the outside looking in for most of training camp. His fate was then sealed when the Chiefs decided to add a blocker to round out the TE room in a trade with the Dallas Cowboys for Peyton Hendershot.

Following his release from the Chiefs, Smith had a tryout with the Cleveland Browns shortly after they lost David Njoku, but the team decided to sign Geoff Swaim instead. Fortunately for Smith, he didn't have to wait all that long into 2024 to find a new place to call home—at least for now.

A former second round selection of the Minnesota Vikings in 2019, Smith spent his first three seasons there in the Twin Cities before finding his way to the Cincinnati Bengals in 2023. The Texans are now his fourth NFL franchise.