One Free Agent the Texans Must Sign

The Houston Texans are headed into the start of NFL free agency with a bit of added flexibility to spend on the market for a couple of key upgrades on their roster.

With a current estimated effective cap space of over $30 million (according to @TexansCap on X), the Texans have the ability to make some deals. And in a critical offseason for the future of this roster and the development of their offensive side of the ball, it's dire that Nick Caserio and Houston's front office remains aggressive to add one, or a couple of new starters on the open market with their newfound money on the books.

As to who the Texans could target, there are a few names that have been linked to Houston in recent days as a signing who might make sense–– but none more than Carolina Panthers free agent center Cade Mays.

He's a free agent that, barring a surprise new deal with the Panthers before free agency opens up at the start of next week, needs to end up with the Texans to be their Week One starting center.

Why the Texans Need to Sign Cade Mays

Mays isn't a free agent that jumps off the page like some of the other big names hitting the open market next week, but he's certainly going to be a value add for whatever team ends up with him.

Mays, a 26-year-old 6-foot-6, 235-pound veteran center, comes off a season in which he was graded as the 24th-best center among 40 eligible names via Pro Football Focus (62.4), but also wound up as the 13th-best graded pass blocker at the position by the end of the year as well.

It's production and stability that the Texans could certainly use on their own offensive line, which has been often rumored to be searching for more competition at center entering the 2026 season.

A signing of Mays would signal one of the bigger investments made on the offensive line from Nick Caserio in the past couple of seasons, along with their second-round selection of Aireontae Ersery, and shows an added emphasis on aggression for this offseason to get this group even better for C.J. Stroud and this offense entirely.

Dec 14, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Carolina Panthers center Cade Mays (64) runs on the field before the game against the New Orleans Saints at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

There are better centers on the market that the Texans could hypothetically pursue. The big fish hitting the free agency pool is, of course, Baltimore Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum, who's expected to get a market-setting deal on his next contract, wherever that may be.

He would obviously be a big upgrade on the Texans' own offensive line. But it's hard to imagine Houston having the ability to dabble into that bidding war to upgrade their center spot when factoring in their other stars to pay on the roster, even for a player like Linderbaum.

Instead, someone like Mays could make a ton of practical sense. His investment could be a much more reasonable ask for the Texans front office to spend, would bring the aspired veteran upgrade to their offensive line, and could be just the upgrade this offensive front needs in an offseason where multiple new starters are expected to be lining up for Week One in September.