An oft-injured tight end has found a new home after spending a year in H-Town.
The Iowa football program is well-known for developing NFL-caliber tight ends, and that tradition continued in 2025.
The Houston Texans selected former Hawkeye Luke Lachey in the seventh round of the 2025 NFL Draft, but he never made an appearance in the NFL.
After selecting him in the draft, the Texans waived him during roster cuts in August, but they did re-sign him to the practice squad.
Following a short tenure in Houston, Lachey is on the move once again and is heading up to the NFC North.
Lachey is joining the Green Bay Packers after being claimed off waivers
Lachey has a new opportunity to make an NFL roster, and even though it will be an uphill climb, Green Bay would not have claimed him if they weren't going to give him a chance to compete.
The Packers claimed DB M.J. Devonshire off waivers from Buffalo and TE Luke Lachey off waivers from Houston.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) May 12, 2026
Lachey was recently added to a crowded Packers' tight end room that already features Tucker Craft, Luke Musgrave, RJ Maryland, Messiah Swinson, and Josh Whyle.
When healthy, Lachey was productive for the Hawkeyes, but he was frequently injured during his final two seasons before heading to the NFL.
After redshirting in 2020, he played in all 13 games in 2021 and 2022 before suffering season-ending injury in the third game of the 2023 season. He returned in 2024, but missed two more games with an injury.
During his Hawkeye career, Lachey compiled 83 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Lachey is now on his second team in as many years, and he has an uphill climb to make the Packers' 53-man roster.
How Lachey could make the Texans roster
Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft are the clear No. 1 and No. 2 tight ends on the roster, with Josh Whyle projected as the No. 3, which doesn't give Lachey a whole lot of wiggle room to make the roster.
Especially as a waiver signing, Lachey has to show Green Bay that he is back to the form he saw in the 2022-2023 season with the Hawkeyes.
That season was Lachey's best after he racked up 28 receptions for 392 receiving yards and four touchdowns, the only four touchdowns he had in his career.
Lachey is a big target with soft hands who can make tough catches in traffic, but with Musgrave and Kraft already locked in as a solid one-two punch, Lachey's best option is to fight for the third TE role and start on special teams.
He is a good blocker and could be used as a redzone tight end or on the hands team on special teams, but he will need to prove he can make an immediate impact.
Lachey is most likely headed for another practice squad assignment, unless he can break through as a fourth tight end.
The skills and athleticism are definitely there, and with a renewed importance on tight ends in the NFL, he could squeeze out a role in the right system.
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