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Hunter popped up on the report with this injury on Thursday as limited and wound up ruled out after a DNP on Friday. Rough scenes for the $40 million-a-year edge rusher. This will be the first game he has missed since the 2021 season. Houston’s pass rush looks tenuous against the Browns with Will Anderson Jr. also on the questionable line.

The two sides did the same thing last March via a $35.6 million deal. Hunter’s new one-year extension includes a $30.7 million signing bonus. Per PFF, Hunter totaled 83 quarterback pressures and 16 sacks last season. Both figures rank in the top five in the NFL.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports Hunter is now the NFL’s second-highest paid defensive end and will make $32 million this season, a $12.5 million bump from his previous contract. His deal becomes a two-year, $55.1 million agreement with $54.1 million guaranteed. Hunter initially signed a two-year deal with the Texans last offseason and now gets one more season in Houston with a pay bump after tallying 12 sacks and a Pro Bowl in 2024. With Will Anderson opposite Hunter, the Texans keep a menacing pass rush through 2026. This sets another price point in an expensive edge market with pass rushers like Trey Hendrickson and Micah Parsons next to cash in.