Texans extend Pro Bowl linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair through 2029

The Texans kept one of DeMeco Ryans’ most important defensive pieces in place, reaching a three-year extension with Azeez Al-Shaair that runs through the 2029 season and is worth about $54 million. The move, announced Friday, came two weeks after Houston gave Will Anderson Jr. a three-year, $150 million extension that made him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history, a clear sign the franchise is spending heavily to keep its defense at the center of its identity.

Al-Shaair has become more than a productive starter in Houston. In 2025, he finished with 103 tackles, two interceptions and nine passes defensed, helping a defense that allowed 277.2 yards per game and 17.4 points per game. Across two seasons with the Texans, he has played 27 games and produced 173 tackles, eight tackles for loss, two sacks, 13 passes defensed, two interceptions and three forced fumbles. Last season also brought his first Pro Bowl selection after he started 16 games.

The contract gives Houston a long runway with a player who had already been under a three-year, $34 million deal signed in March 2024. That previous agreement included an $11 million signing bonus and $21.5 million in total guarantees, and it was set to expire after the 2026 season. By extending Al-Shaair now, Houston locked in another core defender before the market could climb further, but it also added to the financial weight of a roster that has already committed premium money to Anderson and now Al-Shaair.

The Texans are betting that this is the group that can carry them through the next phase of contention. Al-Shaair entered the league as an undrafted free agent with the San Francisco 49ers on May 3, 2019, spent his first four NFL seasons in San Francisco, then joined the Tennessee Titans on March 20, 2023 before signing with Houston on March 15, 2024. Listed at 6-foot-2 and 228 pounds, he has steadily turned that path into a central role in Houston’s defense and a major voice in the locker room.

His value in Houston extends beyond the field. The Texans said Al-Shaair worked with United Way, visited Covenant House to support homeless youth, hosted students from HYPE Freedom School, and celebrated the Texans’ Girls Flag League champions. Houston also named him its Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Club Winner for 2025, a reflection of why the organization described him as a force “in the locker room, on the field and in the city.”