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Houston Texans News & Rumors

Texans Sign WR Chester Rogers

August 2nd, 2022 at 8:25pm CST by Adam La Rose

8:25pm: The Texans have indeed signed Rogers to a contract, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). It will be a one-year deal for the receiver.

9:00am: The Texans could be eyeing an addition or two in their receiver room. Houston is working out free agents Willie Snead and Chester Rogers, per Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network. Kurt Benkert was the quarterback throwing to the two receivers, Wilson adds (on Twitter). The team is not planning to sign Benkert at this time, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. 

Snead, 29, has been a member of this offseason’s free agent WR class which has, with few exceptions, received little interest even as training camps have opened up. He is coming off of a disappointing 2021 season, in which he totalled four receptions between the Raiders and Panthers. The former UDFA is best known for his time in New Orleans, where he totaled nearly 2,000 yards in three seasons. That was followed by a three-year stint in Baltimore, in which he occupied a secondary role in the team’s low-volume passing attack. Eyeing a more favorable landing spot, the veteran has remained patient while weighing potential free agent destinations.

At 28, Rogers is in a similar position in terms of age and desire for a longer-term NFL home. His best season to date came in 2018 with the Colts, when he registered 53 catches for 485 yards. That led to him being tendered the following year, but a knee fracture ended his final Colts season prematurely. The Grambling State product spent 2020 on the Dolphins’ practice squad, then last season with the Titans. He logged a similar snap share (42%) on offense to his previous campaigns, but logged the largest workload of his career as a returner. ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets that Rogers has received interest from “multiple teams.”

The Texans lacked established wideouts aside from Brandin Cooks heading into this season. The position then received a significant blow when it came out that second-round rookie John Metchie will miss the 2022 season with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia. As at least a stop-gap option, then, either of these free agents could take on a notable role in Houston as the team looks to take a step forward on offense, and they aim to rebuild their market value.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/1/22

August 1st, 2022 at 6:40pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are the first minor moves of August:

Baltimore Ravens

Denver Broncos

  • Activated from active/PUP list: WR KJ Hamler

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

The Lions’ new running back, Jackson, has found a second home after playing out his rookie contract in Los Angeles. The former seventh-round pick out of Northwestern spent his time with the Chargers backing up starting running back Austin Ekeler, earning a few starts during Ekeler’s more injury-riddled periods. Despite not receiving many touches, Jackson has made the most of each one averaging 5.0 yards per carry during his four-year career in the NFL to total 1,040 rushing yards and four touchdowns, adding 508 yards receiving on 65 receptions. Jackson will compete with Craig Reynolds and Jermar Jefferson for the reserve positions behind the top-two backs, D’Andre Swift and Jamaal Williams.

NFL Injury Updates: Woods, Patrick, Adams, Stingley

July 30th, 2022 at 2:17pm CST by Ely Allen

With Tennessee trading wide receiver A.J. Brown during the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft in order to select Arkansas wide receiver Treylon Burks, the Titans will now look to former Bills and Rams wide receiver Robert Woods to serve as the team’s No. 1 receiving option. This puts lots of pressure on Woods as he continues to recover from a torn ACL suffered in practice last November. 

While Woods was acquired for a sixth-round pick and Burks was acquired with a first (via the Brown-trade), Woods nine years as a starter and veteran experience places him atop the depth chart over the rookie, Burks, for now. Woods had been experiencing a run of the best football of his career over the last four years. Since 2018, Woods has recorded season receiving totals of 1,219 yards, 1,134 yards, and 936 yards, all higher than any totals from his first five years in the league. He also reached six receiving touchdowns twice in that span, setting new career highs there, as well. At a pace of 61.78 receiving yards per game before his injury last year, Woods was set for his third 1,000-yard season in four years, and, with five total touchdowns, was on pace to set a new career high in scoring, as well.

The good news is that Woods has been full-go at Titans camp so far this month, according to Ben Arthur of The Tennessean. Not only is Woods out there taking live reps at practice, but he’s using the off-periods to work with quarterback Ryan Tannehill on timing and chemistry.

“It’s strong enough. It’s repaired. It’s healed,” Woods said in regards to his knee. “So my mentality going out here and practicing is push it and go. You almost want to like push it to the limit and see what you can do and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NFL this preseason, starting with an update out of the Windy City:

  • It appears that Bears center Lucas Patrick will require surgery on his right hand, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. The former Packer is expected to start for new Chicago offensive coordinator Luke Getsy, as he did during their time together in Green Bay. While surgery will take him out of the lineup for a few weeks, the hope is that, by treating it this early in training camp, Patrick will be able to possibly return before the season opener.
  • While it was originally expected that Seahawks safety Jamal Adams would miss time while dealing with previous hand injuries, further reports reveal that he is expected to return to practice soon, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Adams has been dealing with finger injuries for quite some time and, recently, broke a finger when it got stuck in a helmet during practice. Any surgery that may be required will be pushed to the offseason and, for now, he will return to the field “with a club and a special cast for games.”
  • The Texans’ No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft, LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., is attempting to bounce back from nagging injuries that limited him to only 10 games of action in his final two years of college. Houston was impressed enough with his freshman year numbers of six interceptions and 21 passes defensed to make him the first cornerback off the board from an impressive group of defensive backs. They also are hoping his injury woes have ended as head coach Lovie Smith said he expects the 21-year-old to be ready for the regular season opener, according to Mark Berman of Fox Sports.

NFL Workouts: 7/29/22

July 29th, 2022 at 9:00pm CST by Ely Allen

Here’s a list of minor players who visited or worked out for an NFL team today:

Carolina Panthers

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Washington Commanders

Howard had recently also worked out for the Saints, along with Bo Scarbrough, according to Nick Underhill at New Orleans Football Network. Howard has bounced between Philadelphia and Miami with limited success since averaging 1,123 rushing yards per season and totaling 24 rushing touchdowns in his first three seasons with the Bears. Injuries and limited productivity have really hurt Howard’s success over the past three years.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/27/22

July 27th, 2022 at 5:45pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor NFL transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

  • Signed: OL Keenan Forbes, G Eric Wilson

NFL Workouts: 7/25/22

July 25th, 2022 at 9:25pm CST by Ely Allen

As players are moved to the PUP and NFI lists and rosters are starting to take shape for the start of training camps, many players are searching for opportunities to make a team.

Here’s the list of players who have received workouts or taken visits today and this past weekend:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

New England

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

 

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/24/22

July 24th, 2022 at 7:00pm CST by Rory Parks

Here are today’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Sloter just took a visit with the Jaguars on Saturday, and he did enough to land a contract. He has been a member of a number of NFL practice squads since signing with the Broncos as a UDFA in 2017, but he has yet to appear in a regular season NFL game. In nine starts for the USFL’s New Orleans Breakers in 2022, he was not especially impressive, completing 57.7% of his passes for 1,798 yards while throwing only nine touchdowns against 11 interceptions. With three other QBs on the Jacksonville roster, Sloter appears to be simply replacing Perry as a camp body at this point.

Texans WR John Metchie III To Miss 2022 Season

July 24th, 2022 at 12:43pm CST by Rory Parks

Texans wide receiver John Metchie III, a second-round rookie, will miss the 2022 season, but it has nothing to do with the torn ACL he suffered in this year’s SEC title game. Unfortunately, the Alabama product has been diagnosed with leukemia.

Metchie released a statement indicating that the diagnosis is Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia, which he says is the most curable form of the disease. He added that he is in good spirits and expects to make a full recovery, but that he will not be playing football this year.

Although the Texans knew that the ACL tear would quite possibly force Metchie to miss time in his rookie campaign, it was expected that he would be able to suit up at some point this season. Indeed, the club was comfortable enough with his medicals to trade away pick nos. 68, 108, and 124 to move up the board and nab Metchie with the No. 44 overall selection.

In 13 games in his final collegiate season, Metchie posted 96 receptions for 1,142 yards and eight scores. Whenever he was medically cleared, he was expected to serve as Houston’s primary slot receiver and as a high-upside weapon for second-year QB Davis Mills. At present, the Texans’ WR depth chart is topped by Brandin Cooks and Nico Collins, but the options behind those two are fairly uninspiring.

Now, Metchie and Houston can only hope that 2023 will bring better fortune. We here at PFR wish Metchie the best in his recovery.

Latest On Texans RB Darius Anderson

July 19th, 2022 at 8:58pm CST by Ben Levine

Texans running back Darius Anderson was charged with burglary with intent to commit assault following an incident on Friday morning, according to Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com. Initial reports listed a charge of burglary with intent to commit rape, but per Wilson, a police official attributed that to a coding error.

According to his attorney, the player only learned of the arrest warrant when he saw the news on television, and he went to the courthouse on Monday morning. He was later released on $20K bond. Anderson’s arraignment was rescheduled from Wednesday to September 20.

According to court records, Anderson’s ex-girlfriend claimed that the athlete forced his way into her home on Friday morning and didn’t leave until she locked herself in a bathroom and called police. Anderson allegedly tried to assault the woman once they entered the home, and the player took “some shoes” before leaving (via Miya Shay of ABC13.com). Anderson denies the allegations.

“We are aware of the report involving Darius Anderson,” the Texans said in a statement. “We are gathering information and have no further comment at this time.”

Anderson scored 18 touchdowns in four seasons at TCU. He had one of his most productive collegiate seasons as a senior in 2021, finishing with 951 yards from scrimmage and six touchdowns on 173 touches. He went undrafted during the 2020 draft, and after spending his rookie season with the Cowboys and Colts, Anderson joined the Texans late during the 2021 campaign. He inked a reserve/future contract with the organization back in January. The 24-year-old was already facing an uphill battle to make the roster; at best, he was battling with Royce Freeman and Dare Ogunbowale to be the team’s fourth RB.

Texans Settle 30 Lawsuits Related To Alleged Deshaun Watson Sexual Misconduct

July 15th, 2022 at 2:57pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Texans attempted to end their part in the Deshaun Watson saga Friday, settling 30 lawsuits with women who had made or were planning to make claims against the team related to alleged sexual misconduct by the former Houston quarterback, according to Houston TV station KPRC.

A civil suit against the Texans emerged not long after a lengthy New York Times report detailed the quarterback’s alleged improper behavior during massage therapy sessions. The first woman to file suit against the Texans, one of the four who did not settle with the embattled quarterback, accused the team of turning a blind eye to Watson’s off-field misconduct. The Texans believe the NFL, through recent inquiries, did not uncover wrongdoing on their part, Josina Anderson of USA Today tweets. Though, a thorough investigation of the Texans has not believed to have taken place.

That lawsuit alleged that the Texans, by giving Watson a Houstonian hotel and spa membership and arranging nondisclosure agreements for him, enabled their then-QB’s behavior, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com notes. Texans trainer Roland Ramirez confirmed in a deposition the team arranged for the hotel membership. Watson allegedly used the room for massages. The Times reported he received massages from at least 66 women from fall 2019 to spring 2021.

“We were shocked and deeply saddened when we first learned of the allegations against our then franchise quarterback in March 2021,” Cal, Hannah and Janice McNair, the family the owns the Texans, said in a statement. “Although our organization did not have any knowledge of Deshaun Watson’s alleged misconduct, we have intentionally chosen to resolve this matter amicably. This is not an admission of any wrongdoing, but instead a clear stand against any form of sexual assault and misconduct.”

Rumors of other accusers coming forward against Watson have surfaced this offseason, and while Friday’s count would seem to confirm those, no other lawsuits have been filed against the sixth-year QB. Watson attorney Rusty Hardin said Friday the Texans’ settlements have “no significance” to Watson’s cases, Wilson adds (via Twitter). Watson’s civil cases will run into 2023, with both Hardin and the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Tony Buzbee, agreeing on a moratorium which will last until March 1, 2023.

Watson and the Browns are awaiting disciplinary officer Sue Robinson’s ruling, which may not occur until after next week. The NFL has pushed for a full-season suspension, something the league could ensure upon appeal — unless Robinson rules Watson did not violate the league’s personal conduct policy. That scenario, one in which Watson is eligible to play Week 1, has long been considered unlikely.

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