Safety Will Demps has made a habit of making big hits during critical times of games.
The Texans re-signed free agent free safety Will Demps and defensive end N.D. Kalu, the team announced Thursday.
Demps (6-0, 208) played in 15 games with eight starts for the Texans in 2007. He finished the season with 49 tackles, including 38 solo stops, and he recorded four passes defensed, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Demps also notched three tackles and a fumble recovery in special teams action.
Demps averaged 6.5 tackles per game over the last seven games of the season, with 46 of his 49 tackles coming in that time frame. He recorded a season-high 12 tackles at Tennessee (12/2), and he forced and recovered a fumble versus Tampa Bay (12/9). In Week 14 versus Denver (12/13), Demps registered seven tackles (six solos) and a season-high three passes defensed. In six NFL seasons, Demps has played in 88 games with 70 starts. He has six career interceptions, 34 passes defensed, seven forced fumbles and eight fumble recoveries. He spent the first four years of his career with Baltimore after signing with the Ravens as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2002, then started all 16 games for the New York Giants in 2006. Demps originally joined the Texans on Sept. 11, 2007.
Kalu (6-3, 257) saw action in 15 games with one start for the Texans last season. He registered 13 tackles, including eight solo stops, and three sacks. The sack total was his highest since 2003, when he recorded 5.5 for Philadelphia. In two years with Houston, Kalu has played in 30 games with four starts and has made 34 tackles, including 24 solo stops, plus five sacks and two passes defensed.
"I'm just so excited," Kalu said in an interview with HoustonTexans.com. "This is my hometown. It's been a dream of mine to end my professional career here in Houston, and for them to extend it for another year, I'm just really excited right now."
Kalu has recorded 233 total tackles, including 142 solos, and 31 sacks in 11 NFL seasons. The San Antonio native and Rice alumnus played for Philadelphia as a rookie in 1997, then moved to Washington for three seasons (1998-2000) before returning to the Eagles for five more years (2001-05). Kalu signed with the Texans as an unrestricted free agent on March 27, 2006.
The veteran end looks forward to continuing to mentor his talented young teammates, including defensive end Mario Williams and defensive tackle Amobi Okoye.
"That's special, because I know when I am done playing that I'll be able to watch those guys for years to come and know that I was there when they were young and helping them out," he said. "So it's very special to be next to two future superstars like those guys."
Demps and Kalu are the fourth and fifth free agents that the Texans have re-signed this offseason, joining tight end Mark Bruener (3/10), strong safety Glenn Earl (3/7) and wide receiver André Davis (2/29).
Following are the free agents that the Texans have re-signed (3):
| Player | Height | Weight | ||||||||||
| FS Will Demps | 6-0 | 208 | ||||||||||
| DE N.D. Kalu | 6-3 | 265 | ||||||||||
| TE Mark Bruener | 6-4 | 252 | ||||||||||
| WR André Davis | 6-1 | 194 | ||||||||||
| SS Glenn Earl | 6-1 |
Following are the free agents that the Texans have signed from other teams (4):
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