Once upon a time, Irv Smith Jr. was selected in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings to be the eventual replacement for Pro Bowl tight end Kyle Rudolph. Spoiler alert, that didn't even come close to happening; however, Smith has still found a way to continue a career in the NFL since parting with the Vikings after the 2022 season.
Last September, the former Minnesota second-round pick landed a contract with the Houston Texans, and he wound up appearing in a total of seven games for the reigning AFC South champions, including the playoffs.
Smith apparently did enough during his time with the Texans last season to impress them, as ESPN's Schefter revealed on Friday that Houston and the former Vikings tight end have reportedly agreed to a new one-year contract.
Terms of Smith's latest deal with the Texans haven't been released yet, but it's safe to assume he'll be getting paid close to the $1.13 million the team gave him last season.
In 2024, Smith was able to get on the field with Houston after two of the team's tight ends, Brevin Jordan, Dalton Keene, and Cade Stover wound up landing on the Texans' injured reserve list with various injuries.
Smith made his first appearance last season in Houston's Week 13 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. He didn't catch any passes, he wasn't even targeted once, and he was only on the field for a total of 17 offensive snaps.
The rest of Smith's time on the field for the Texans in 2024 went pretty similar, as he didn't have more than 23 offensive snaps in a single game. He was used mostly as a blocking tight end on run plays by Houston last season, which is a much different role than many thought he was going to have when he first entered the NFL with the Vikings in 2024.
Minnesota fans are well aware that every draft selection isn't going to meet the expectations they are originally given. But Smith still deserves some credit for finding a way to still keep his NFL career going despite things not going according to plan when he was in Minnesota.
