Azeez Al-Shaair knew after a breakout season with the Tennessee Titans that a reunion was in store with DeMeco Ryans. It was always the Houston Texans or bust for the former San Francisco 49ers star.
I’m glad he’s on our team,” Texans safety JalenPitre said of Al-Shaair, who inked a three-year, $34 million contract this offseason. “He’s a guy who knows the system very well and is going to help us a lot.”
Not every path to stardom begins with first-team reps. Al-Shaair, an undrafted free agent in 2019 out of Florida Atlantic, might be the poster child for living up to the expectations when given the chance. As a subpackage linebacker, Al-Shaair played a potent role in three-tandem sets and as a rotational player.
Last season, he signed a one-year deal worth $5 million with Tennessee to prove his numbers could expand. In a sense, Al-Shaair bet on himself. His outcome? A top-five finish in tackles (163) to match nine tackles for loss and a pair of sacks.
Al-Shaair will command the middle as the new leader of Ryans’ defense, but the Texans expect promising numbers from third-year pro Christian Harris. Among dominant campaigns from Derek Stingley Jr. and Will Anderson Jr., Harris, a fellow Alabama grad, became one of the better weakside off-ball backers in Ryans’ scheme, totaling 101 tackles and two sacks.
The linebacker room is balanced entering the final days of voluntary OTAs, but where does Al-Shaair rank among the greats? How about Harris? Is he a top-32 player at the position?
Here’s Texans Wire’s top 32 off-ball linebackers entering June.