The Jacksonville Jaguars have added linebacker Jamal Hill to their practice squad after the former Houston Texans player cleared waivers, according to a report from Aaron Wilson of KPRC.
The move gives the 25-year-old another opportunity to remain in the NFL following a brief and limited tenure with the team that originally drafted him.
Hill entered the league as a sixth-round selection, taken by Houston with the 188th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
He arrived with a solid college pedigree from the University of Oregon, where he earned honorable-mention All-Pac-12 recognition in 2020.
That background helped him secure a four-year rookie contract worth $4,209,392, including a $189,392 signing bonus. As he approached the third year of that deal, however, his standing in Houston grew uncertain.
The Texans waived Hill following the preseason, then brought him back on the practice squad. He later earned a promotion to the active roster in early September, appearing in five games during the 2026 season and recording four total tackles.
Those numbers reflect a modest role rather than a consistent contributor, and Houston ultimately released him earlier this week. Once he passed through waivers unclaimed, Jacksonville moved to sign him to its practice squad.
For the Jaguars, the addition represents a low-risk depth move at linebacker.
Practice-squad signings allow teams to evaluate players in a controlled setting without committing a full roster spot, and Hill’s recent experience with an AFC South rival could prove useful if injuries or roster needs arise later in the season.
At 25, he is still early enough in his career that continued development remains possible, particularly if he can demonstrate reliability in practice and special-teams situations.
Hill’s path has been uneven since leaving Oregon. A late-round draft choice often faces long odds to stick with his original team, and the cycle of waivers, practice-squad returns, and brief active-roster stints is familiar to many players in similar positions.
His four tackles across five appearances this year did not create enough of an impression in Houston to keep him on the 53-man roster, yet the fact that Jacksonville pursued him once he became available suggests some remaining interest in his skill set.
Whether this latest stop becomes more permanent will depend on how Hill performs in the coming weeks and whether the Jaguars face any linebacker attrition.
For now, the signing keeps him in the league and provides Jacksonville with an additional body who has already logged regular-season snaps in 2026. In a league where roster margins are thin and depth can shift quickly, such transactions remain a standard part of in-season personnel management.
Surely, the Jaguars will have more significant moves coming as the Nov. 10 NFL trade deadline approaches.
