Houston Texans Terminate Contract of Long-Time NFL QB

The Houston Texans have released quarterback Brett Rypien as they trim the roster to 53 players, ending a brief mid-August stint that began as an emergency fill-in.

Houston signed Rypien on Aug. 15 after third-stringer Graham Mertz tore his ACL in the preseason opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.

The plan was straightforward: C.J. Stroud as the starter, Davis Mills as the veteran backup, and Rypien as the third option. Two weeks later, with cutdown day arriving, the Texans chose to carry only two quarterbacks on the initial 53-man roster.

Rypien did not force the issue. Across Houston’s final two preseason games he completed 19 of 33 passes for 145 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. That was not enough to keep a roster spot on a team that has spent four seasons building around Stroud and Mills.

The 30-year-old has been in the NFL since 2020, when he first appeared in regular-season games for the Denver Broncos after signing as an undrafted free agent out of Boise State in 2019.

In 11 career games and four starts he has thrown for 950 yards, four touchdowns and nine interceptions while completing 58.3 percent of his passes. The stops have piled up: Denver, the Rams, Seahawks, Jets, Bears, Vikings, Bengals, Colts and now Houston. He is the nephew of Super Bowl XXVI MVP Mark Rypien and still holds the Mountain West career passing-yardage record from his days at Boise State.

Because Rypien is a vested veteran, Houston can add him to the practice squad without exposing him to waivers.

Offensive coordinator Nick Caley coached him with the Rams in 2023, which could keep the door open in Houston. Other teams looking for a late-summer third quarterback could also call. For now, he is a free agent again.

The move is typical late-August housekeeping more than a referendum on Rypien’s career. Most clubs prefer two quarterbacks on the 53 and a third on the practice squad.

With Mertz already on injured reserve, Stroud and Mills will open the season as Houston’s only active-roster passers unless the front office signs someone else before Week 1.

For Rypien, it is another chapter in a journeyman path that began in 2020 and has never quite produced a stable backup job.

For the Texans, it is one more box checked as they lock in a roster built to chase another AFC South title and a deeper playoff run.