Cornerback Desmond King is joining the Houston Texans on a one-year, $3.5 million deal, his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
King, who turned 26 in December, was acquired by the Tennessee Titans from the Los Angeles Chargers last November in exchange for a 2021 sixth-round pick. He made an immediate impact in his first game for the Titans, returning a fumble 63-yards for a touchdown against the Chicago Bears.
He finished the 2020 season with 31 tackles, a sack and a quarterback hit in nine games with the Titans.
Earlier in the week, Houston agreed to sign cornerback Terrance Mitchell and re-signed cornerback Vernon Hargreaves, a first-round pick in 2016.
Houston’s No. 1 cornerback, Bradley Roby, will be suspended for Week 1 of the NFL season for the final game of his suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances. When he is back on the field, the Texans could play Roby and Mitchell outside and King in the slot.
The Chargers selected King in the fifth round of the 2017 draft. King settled in as the starting nickel corner and was named a 2018 first-team All-Pro at the position as well as a second-team All-Pro at punt returner.
King was relegated to a backup role when the Chargers signed free agent Chris Harris Jr, but he resumed his role as their nickelback after Harris was injured in late September.
Over his four-year career with the Chargers and Titans, King has posted 244 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 4 interceptions, 19 passes defended to go along with 16 tackles for a loss and 14 quarterback hits. King also returned 51 punts for 455 yards and two touchdowns in his career.
ESPN’s Sarah Barshop and Turron Davenport contributed to this report.