After the NFL Draft in Detroit in April, former Virginia Tech defensive tackle Pheldarius Payne signed as an undrafted free agent with Houston Texas. He impressed at minicamp in May and stayed with the defending AFC South champions until training camp was scheduled to begin.

Houston released Payne just before practice began, but nearly three weeks after his release, the Texans are bringing him back. Payne has been signed to a second term with the team and has a chance to earn a spot on the roster or practice squad.

Payne, who transferred from Nebraska to Virginia Tech in March 2022, was previously released due to a hamstring injury. He went undrafted, although he had an impressive Pro Day in Blacksburg in March and had some interviews with some professional teams afterward, but his name was never called in Detroit.

The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Payne recorded 31 tackles for the Hokies last season, including 10 solo, and had four sacks for Chris Marve’s defense. Along with Antwaun Powell-Ryland and others, Virginia Tech’s defensive line gave ACC opponents plenty of problems in the final two months of the season and then in their win over Tulane in the Military Bowl.

During minicamp, Payne impressed Texans coach DeMeco Ryans: “He’s a below-average defensive tackle who is very explosive and quick. You’ve seen him make a lot of plays on the other side of the line of scrimmage, taking advantage of his explosiveness and quickness. We’d like to see him translate that into our scheme and what we do. We have some smaller defensive linemen on our team, and I think if the guys play the style of play that I want to play – the guys attack and we can take advantage of his quickness – hopefully Payne can be a player that can add value to that group as well.”

Payne will have a chance to make an early impression when Houston hosts the New York Giants on Saturday.