Mark Gronowski’s pro journey has taken plenty of twists, but he finally has something real to show for it: a spot on an NFL active roster.
The Houston Texans signed Gronowski to their 53-man roster ahead of Week 5, giving the former Iowa quarterback his first shot at sticking on an active squad after a chaotic start to his NFL career. It’s a long way from where this began. Gronowski went undrafted in the 2026 NFL Draft despite a college résumé that put him among the most productive quarterbacks in the sport.
At Iowa, Gronowski piled up 12,071 passing yards and 103 passing touchdowns while completing 63.5% of his throws. He added 2,312 rushing yards and 53 rushing touchdowns, including a program-record 16 rushing scores last season. His 2025 season with the Hawkeyes was especially productive, as he set Iowa records for rushing yards by a quarterback in a single season with 545 and rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a single season with 16.
Even with that production, the NFL path was anything but straightforward. Gronowski signed with the Miami Dolphins as an undrafted free agent on May 11, 2026, was waived on August 7, re-signed to a one-year, $885K non-guaranteed deal on August 16, then was waived again on August 30. After clearing waivers, he returned to Miami’s practice squad on August 31, was released from that practice squad on September 1, and then landed with the Texans’ practice squad on September 8.
Houston made the move official on October 7, posting, “We have signed Mark Gronowski and made other roster moves. pic.twitter.com/G17yuEpG8N”
The Texans’ decision comes as the team sits at 0-4 and has struggled badly on both sides of the ball. The offense has not been sharp, and the defense has been even worse. That’s a notable shift for a DeMeco Ryans team, since Houston’s defense has been elite under him until this season.
Gronowski’s role is still unclear. He’s not expected to jump into meaningful snaps with C.J.
Stroud off to a solid start and Davis Mills entrenched as the primary backup. Still, Houston clearly wanted him on the active roster, and he could be used in running packages if the Texans want to change things up or catch a defense off guard.
For now, the important part is simple: after a rocky start and a lot of waiting, Gronowski finally got the roster spot he’d been chasing.
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