HOUSTON – The Texans are re-signing veteran defensive tackle Foley Fatukasi to a one-year contract, per league sources.
Fatukasi, 30 is a key run-stopper who has recovered from a shoulder injury that delayed his free agency process.
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Fatukasi battled through foot and ankle injuries last season to emerge again as a vital interior player for the AFC South champion Texans’ defense
“Look around, really great players,” Fatukasi told KPRC 2 as he looked around the Texans’ locker room after a playoff win over the Los Angeles Chargers. “This is the best team I’ve ever been on. Just to really see how everyone comes together and has each others’ backs, it’s amazing to watch. Both sides of the ball, it’s really fun to see.”
It was Fatukasi who delivered a key tackle for a loss of two yards on Los Angeles Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins in a 32-12 AFC wild-card round playoff victory. Fatukasi’s size and instincts make a difference in the Texans’ defense, which stonewalled the Chargers running game for just 50 rushing yards on 18 carries as Dobbins gained just 26 yards on nine carries for an average of 2.9 yards per carry.
Fatukasi, signed last year to a one-year, $5.125 million that included a $3.125 million signing bonus and $4.625 million total guaranteed, was previously with the New York Jets and the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Limited to 11 games last season due to injuries, Fatukasi recorded 24 tackles, four for losses, three quarterback hits and one sack in the regular season.
“Foley’s another guy, he’s had some up and down moments throughout the year dealing with injuries, but he worked in the background when no one else was watching,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said last season. “He was working to get himself back healthy to help our team and as soon as he gets back out, you instantly see the impact he has when it comes to, first and foremost, the run game. We talk about playing physical up front in the run game, he made a nice third down stop versus the Chargers because of his physicality on the interior of the D-line.
“And we’ve been missing that and that helps when you can have a guy play stout, play physical as Foley plays, it helps us to play really good run defense and that’s always the No. 1 key. When we line up, we have to stop the run to make teams one dimensional and having Foley has been a huge reason to why we were able to play good run defense.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com