The Houston Texans got a little healthier this week, but still have five players whose Week 17 statuses are up in the air.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud, wideouts Nico Collins and Noah Brown and linebackers Denzel Perryman and Blake Cashman were all full participants in Friday’s practice and carried no injury designation for the match against the Tennessee Titans.
The same cannot be said for six others, though.
Defensive end Jonathan Greenard, who leads the team with 12.5 sacks, was ruled out of the game with an ankle injury. Five others were designated as questionable for the match, mostly on the defensive side of the ball: DE Will Anderson (ankle), CB Steven Nelson (foot, hamstring, hand), DT Maliek Collins (hip), FB Andrew Beck (calf) and DT Sheldon Rankins (ankle).
Friday’s Injury Report for #TENvsHOU
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— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) December 29, 2023
Greenard is a huge loss, but the potential return of Anderson could mitigate Greenard’s absence on the pass rush front. The Texans could also be without two key interior defensive linemen in Collins and Rankins.
If none of the three questionable defensive linemen can play, Houston would be without its entire starting front-four. That would be a huge development against a Titans squad looking to play spoiler with Derrick Henry in the backfield.
The Texans need this win, too, if they want to turn their Week 18 clash with the Indianapolis Colts an potential AFC South title game and/or win-and-you’re-in wildcard game.