HOUSTON -- After releasing long-time center Chris Myers in March, the Houston Texans have made an offer to him to add depth to their offensive line, sources said.
Mark Berman of FOX 26 and John McClain of the Houston Chronicle first reported the Texans' interest in bringing him back. Myers is currently considering his options.
Myers still counts for $2 million of the Texans' salary cap due to a prorated bonus from the contract he signed in 2012. But by releasing him, they saved $6 million in cap space and cash. That $8 million cap hit was a big part of why the Texans parted with him.
Another factor was that they felt ready to move on from Myers as their starting center, a position he held in Houston since 2008 when the Texans traded for him with the Broncos.
In his absence, the Texans have worked Ben Jones at center. Jones had previously played mostly left guard for the Texans. Second-year guard Xavier Su'a-Filo has also worked at center as has James Ferentz, who came to the Texans undrafted last year. None has the experience of Myers, who would be entering his 11th NFL season in 2015.
Depth can be assessed in many ways. In the view of Texans coach Bill O'Brien, the offensive line doesn't need numbers overall so much as it needs numbers at each position. The difference there is that if a player can play more than one position, he can check several boxes.
"If we decide to keep nine or if we decide to keep eight, that's always a discussion depending on that position and how it effects other positions," O'Brien said. "...You can look on last year, where we usually went to the game with, I think, seven guys. So the sixth and seventh guy had to be guys that can play center and guard, guard and tackle, or tackle and tight end."
It's not limited to reserves either. The Texans moved right tackle Derek Newton inside to guard against the Ravens last season when Brandon Brooks was ill and Tyson Clabo was playing right tackle.
