While Phillip Dorsett was contemplating his future while sitting on the Seattle Seahawks' practice squad, he reached into his past connections.
Dorsett, a former New England Patriots wide receiver, wanted to be a part of what Texans general manager Nick Caserio is building. So, he reunited with the former Patriots executive after asking the Seahawks to grant him his release.
Now, Dorsett is signed through the 2022 season to a contract that includes $300,000 guaranteed.
“Obviously, me and him had a good relationship in New England," Dorsett said. "I knew once I asked for my release from Seattle that I would have a chance to be able to come. Once he offered me the chance to come, I ran with it because I believe in him. I think that he has a great eye for talent, and he has a great football mind. I think he’s going to be able to do great things here if he gets the right pieces together and that’s the reason I wanted to be here.”
Dorsett had 73 catches for 881 yards and eight touchdowns in three seasons for the Patriots that coincided with Caserio's tenure as director of player personnel before being hired by Texans chairman and CEO Cal McNair last January.
Photo: Getty Images
Dorsett sees a good future with the Texans, who are in rebuilding mode and are 3-11 with three games remaining in the season.
“I see a lot of guys that fight," Dorsett said. "I see a lot of guys that go out there and they play their butt off. Obviously, we don’t have a lot of guys that have the big names, if you want to say it, but we have a lot of guys that come together and they just go out there and they play really hard and they fight. They are making a name for themselves. That’s the kind of team I want to be a part of. A team that goes out there and no matter, no matter what happens we are going to fight every game and we’ll see what happens on the scoreboard.
“It means a lot. Obviously going into the offseason just trying to build, trying to build what we have and build that chemistry more and more and that will help. Just help us run into the next season. I’m not trying to look forward to it now. We got three games left. We got to end on a good note."
Dorsett, who caught four passes for 55 yards for the Seahawks, caught two passes for 43 yards during a road victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Texans needed help at slot receiver after cutting Anthony Miller before losing Danny Amendola to knee surgery and Davion Davis to a broken leg.
Dorsett received a $100,000 signing bonus and $200,000 of his $1.035 million base salary in 2022 is guaranteed for skill, injury and salary cap. He also has a $50,000 workout bonus.
Originally signed to the Texans' practice squad after being cut by the Seattle Seahawks, Dorsett is now the team's primary slot receiver after Davion Davis
Dorsett, 28, is a former Indianapolis Colts first-round draft pick from Miami.
Dorsett has run the 40-yard dash in 4.33 seconds with a 38-inch vertical leap. A former track star at Miami and in high school, Dorsett finished his college career with 121 receptions for 2,132 yards and 17 touchdowns.
Against the Jaguars, Dorsett beat the blitz and caught a 33-yard pass from rookie quarterback Davis Mills.
"He looks great to me," Dorsett said. " As far as the play, he saw the blitz zero and I saw it, too, but he saw it and got into the right play. He took charge of it instead of bringing me over in motion, he actually told me to stay and then he called the play. I saw it and was like, 'OK, I know if we get the right ball up and he gets time, we’re going to be able to gash them,' and that’s what he did.”
Playing again with wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who caught two touchdowns Sunday against Jacksonville, is significant for Dorsett.
"It’s definitely been big," he said. "It was one of the biggest reasons why I wanted to come, just to reunite with him. We had some great times when we were in New England together. We played in the Super Bowl together. Obviously that’s the goal, just to go out there and be on the same field, running down the field, helping each other get open.
"He’s been a great leader for us. Obviously, I’ve only been here two, three weeks, but I already know his leadership qualities and you can tell it’s fueling the room. He’s a guy that leads by example and we all know what he brings to the table on the field and off the field. He’s a great guy and a great player.”