HOUSTON – Ed Ingram definitely made the most out of his change of scenery after being traded to the Texans last year.
Ingram, 27, emerged as one of the highest graded offensive guards in the league.
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Now, Ingram is back with the Texans on a new contract he earned with his physical style of play. Ingram agreed to a three-year, $37.5 million contract with $23.5 million guaranteed overnight Monday morning, per league sources, as the Texans locked up the former Minnesota Vikings second-round draft pick on a new contract hours before the start of the NFL legal tampering period.
The deal includes a signing bonus of nearly $14 million, and a total of $20 million fully guaranteed at signing with the entire $23.5 million fully guaranteed kicking in by March of 2027, per sources.
The contract was negotiated by Nicole Lynn of Klutch Sports.
The deal averages $12.5 million, ranking him in the top 20 among all guards.
Keeping Ingram along with former Pro Bowl offensive tackle Trent Brown adds continuity to the offensive line after trading top offensive lineman Tytus Howard to the Cleveland Browns. The Texans also traded for running back David Montgomery. The Texans have interest in Carolina Panthers free agent center Cade Mays, per league sources.
At the NFL scouting combine, general manager Nick Caserio signaled that Ingram would be a negotiating priority. There were times when there was doubt that Ingram would stay largely because of the Texans’ salary-cap situation, but they created enough financial flexibility with restructures for Derek Stingley Jr. and Jalen Pitre and extensions for Danielle Hunter and Dalton Schultz.
“Ed had a great year,” Caserio said in late February. “Honestly, he probably had the best year of his career. For the most part, he was out there. He missed a couple games there with injuries. But he’s a good kid. He’s strong. He’s physical. He plays violent in the running game. You saw that on tape quite a bit. Pretty good in pass protection.
“We’re working through that process right now. We’ll have discussion with him and his representatives. We’ll see how far he goes. But I’m glad he was here. He’s a player that we feel benefited from our program. Honestly, sometimes a change in scenery is good. It probably worked out for him and worked out for us as well. I’m glad Ed was on the team here this year.”
Ingram was, early in the season the second-highest rated run blocking guard in the league behind only Indianapolis Colts All-Pro offensive guard Quenton Nelson. Ingram had a 86.1 run blocking grade through the first month of the NFL season, according to Pro Football Focus analytics, behind only Nelson at 90.1. Ingram, a former second-round draft pick from LSU, had the 12th lowest pressure rate allowed (6.4 percent) among all offensive guards, per Next Gen Stats
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Obviously, things didn’t go the way Ingram and the Vikings had hoped for when Minnesota drafted the second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection in the second round four years ago. He lost his starting job last season. Being traded to the Texans in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick has provided a significant boost to Ingram, who is in the final year of his rookie contract and scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent after this season. A return to Texas has given Ingram and the Texans a shot in the arm.
“I feel like personally that’s been like a big thing for me,” Ingram told KPRC 2 during the season. “I feel like when I was in Minnesota I loved it up there, they treated me right. Then, I feel like it’s just it was time for me to leave and I feel like being here is like the new start that I needed. I feel like I’m respected here and I’m valued as a player and I just love this team."
Ingram is building a highlight reel with his collection of pancake blocks.
“I mean y’all see the tape, y’all see the clips, he’s physical,” Howard said during the season. “He brings that every day. I saw it. I knew he was gonna have a good year. His mentality coming into being a Texan, being traded, he had a chip on his shoulder, he had something to prove. I like that.
“And he’s been showing it week in and week out, the type of player he is. And I’m happy for him and I hope I know he’s gonna keep doing it and getting better every week and to be that No. 1 guard in the league. I already feel like he’s the best guard. I’m looking forward to helping him and you know be a dominant right side."
Ingram showed flashes with the Vikings, but never achieved this standard of consistency.
He’s playing like a man with something to prove.
“Ed has done a pretty good job,” Caserio said during the season. “He has played really good football. Sometimes, a change of scenery is good for everybody involved in that situation.
“He’s played good football. He is one of the top-ranked guards in the league, something ridiculous. I’m not saying he is the best guard in the league. He has played good football.”
Operating in offensive coordinator Nick Caley’s scheme that emphasizes power gap blocking elements after playing in primarily zone concepts with the Vikings, Ingram thrived.
He attributed a lot of his improvement to offensive line coach and run game coordinator Cole Popovich, a Dante Scarneccia protege previously with the New England Patriots.
“I feel like nothing really changed,” Ingram said. “We’re just kind of being more intentional in our techniques and going back to our fundamentals. I feel like our coach, Cole Popovich, has been really hitting on going back to the fundamentals and attacking the basics. In order to be a good offensive line, you gotta be good at the fundamentals and the basics and that’s what we’ve really been focusing on.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com