Byron Cowart has returned to an NFL roster eight days after being released by the Kansas City Chiefs. But the former Auburn defensive lineman’s quick return came because of misfortune for another player with Alabama football roots.

While adding Cowart to their roster on Thursday, the Houston Texans placed defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth on injured reserve because a hamstring problem.

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A standout at Murphy High School in Mobile, Stallworth had signed a one-year contract extension on Feb. 28 with the Texans rather than enter NFL free agency in March.

Cowart was a free agent in March, and he signed with the Chiefs on March 24, but he spent less than seven weeks with the team.

Cowart played in all 17 regular-season games for the Indianapolis Colts in 2022. On the field for 227 defensive snaps and 92 special-teams plays, Cowart had 12 tackles, including two tackles for loss last season.

Once ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the 2015 class, Cowart played at Auburn in 2015 and 2016 before being granted his release early in the 2017 season. Cowart cited his lack of playing time and the health of his mother as the reasons he sought to leave the Tigers. Cowart played at Maryland in the 2018 season.

Cowart joined the New England Patriots in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. He played in five games as a rookie, then made 14 starts in his second season, when he totaled 29 tackles and recorded one sack while playing 419 defensive snaps.

Cowart did not play during the 2021 season. He opened training camp on the physically-unable-to-perform list with an undisclosed injury and never came off it.

The Patriots waived Cowart on July 22, 2022, and he joined the Colts the next day as a waiver claim.

Stallworth had been a free agent last offseason, when he signed a one-year contract with Kansas City on April 5, 2022. Stallworth didn’t make the regular-season active roster coming out of the preseason, but he stayed with Kansas City as a member of the practice team. On Oct. 12, 2022, the Chiefs signed Stallworth for their active roster.

Stallworth played 53 defensive snaps in six games for Kansas City before the Chiefs waived him on Dec. 6. The next day, he joined Houston as a waiver claim.

After Stallworth equaled his tackle total with the Chiefs by making four in his debut with the Texans in a 27-23 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 11, Houston placed him on injured reserve with a calf problem, and Stallworth missed the remainder of the season.

Stallworth earned a spot in the New Orleans Saints’ defensive-interior rotation in 2018 as an undrafted rookie from South Carolina. He played 318 defensive snaps while contributing eight tackles, one sack and one fumble recovery in 14 regular-season games. Stallworth added five tackles in two playoff games.

In 2019, Stallworth spent most of the season on New Orleans’ practice squad, playing in the first game and the final three games. He made eight tackles while playing 93 defensive snaps.

After being waived by the Saints during training camp in 2020, Stallworth was picked up by the Colts and played in 16 games that season. He recorded 12 tackles and one-half sack while playing 253 defensive snaps.

In his fourth NFL season, Stallworth played in 16 games for the Colts in 2021. While playing a career-high 332 defensive snaps, Stallworth set a personal best with 16 tackles as he posted three sacks and 12 quarterback hits in 2021.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.