Texans Sign Former First-Round Pick Ahead of Jaguars Game

The Houston Texans have made an elevation to their official 53-man roster in the days before kicking off against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, the Texans are signing cornerback Damon Arnette from their practice squad to their 53-man roster.

Damon Arnette signed to #Texans 53, per agents Ray Haija, Adie von Gontard, and Steve Weinberg to @KPRC2 from being out of #NFL to resurrecting career, former #Raiders first-round pick continues to grow
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) November 7, 2025

Arnette, a former first round pick in 2020, has been a part of the Texans dating back to this offseason while being on their training camp roster.

The 29-year-old would eventually find his way to the practice squad as roster cutdowns ensued, and would remain on the practice squad for the majority of the first half this season.

Arnette was elevated to the game-day roster once previously this year during Houston's Week 5 matchup in their 44-10 win against the Baltimore Ravens.

He would log two total tackles on the day for what would be his first regular season appearance in the NFL since 2021, and now, he gets an opportunity for more across the latter half of the year, starting with Jacksonville in Week 10.

Damon Arnette Added to Texans 53-Man Roster

Aug 16, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans cornerback Damon Arnette (41) runs with the ball after making an interception during the fourth quarter against the Carolina Panthers at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The move to bring on Arnette comes as a follow-up to the injury suffered by third-round rookie cornerback Jaylin Smith, putting him on Injured Reserve for the second time this season and ending his first-year campaign prematurely. Houston needed some extra depth in the secondary, and now finds it with a familiar name who's been around the building.

Arnette was the 19th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft to the Las Vegas Raiders, where he would ultimately spend two years of his career before being released amid some off-the-field issues.

In that timeframe with the Raiders, he had 13 regular-season appearances to put up 29 tackles, a tackle for loss, and three passes defended. He saw his time come to an halt in the NFL in the middle of his 2021 season, keeping him out of the league until Houston opted to give him that opportunity this year.

He now joins a cornerback room held down by the likes of Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter for their upcoming matchup against Jacksonville. Starting nickel Jalen Pitre will be out for his first game of the season with a concussion.

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