The Texans on Thursday announced a two-year, $16 million extension with LB Henry To'oTo'o. It's a particularly interesting deal when you consider the playing-time fluctuations for the LB over the past two years.
Role Has Been Tough to Gauge
To'oTo'o has started games in each of his three seasons since arriving as a fifth-round pick in 2023. His total snap share jumped from 43% as a rookie to 85.3% the following year, with his special-teams exposure dropping by 72% between those seasons.
That seemed to mark an ascension to key-starter status for To'oTo'o in Year 2, but that came with some in-season variation and then a snap decline early last year.
To'oTo'o opened the year playing 89% or more of the defensive snaps each of the three weeks. But the next seven games found him falling short of 60% snap share six times.
That reversed late in the year, and To'oTo'o finished with a 79% snap share for the regular season and 92% across the two playoff games.
2026 Fantasy Football Impact: To'oTo'o Gets a Boost
The contract seems to mean we should believe more in how 2025 finished than the midseason dip.
The Texans also extended LB Azeez Al-Shaair this offseason for more than double To'oTo'o's annual average, securing him as the corps leader through at least 2028.
But there's room for To'oTo'o to settle into the 80-95% range of playing time on a weekly basis.
I boosted his playing time projection for the season after the extension announcement. That puts To'oTo'o in LB4 range of our default LB rankings for IDP leagues.
Dynasty Impact: More Viable with Solidified Role
The contract also obviously makes it easier to believe in To'oTo'o's role beyond this season. He's not likely to become a huge stat producer after totaling just 4 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 9 passes defensed, and 1 INT over his first three seasons.
But the fourth-year guy should provide a solid source for tackles, as long as your scoring for assists is decent. To'oTo'o tallied 11 more assists than solo tackles last season and has just one more solo vs. assists for his career to date.
