The Houston Texans conducted the first of their two joint practices with other NFL teams on Tuesday morning over at the Methodist Training Center. Indeed, the stars were out as the Las Vegas Raiders were the Texans’ guest, as among those in attendance included former Texans head coach Gary Kubiak, whose son Klint is the Raiders’ first year head coach, and Tom Brady, who is a part owner of the Raiders.
The big takeaway from that spirited practice was that, when they’re not going up against the Texans’ top rated defense, the Texans’ offense can actually do some pretty nice things! C.J. Stroud had one of his best days of training camp, a late interception notwithstanding, and the offensive line was able to get some push in the run game, opening holes for David Montgomery and Woody Marks.
Tonight, the two teams will reconvene inside Reliant Stadium for their second games of the preseason. From the Texans’ side, reports are that the Texans will sit their starters once again. With that in mind, here are four things to watch for, if you plan to attend the game or watch on ESPN (or listen on 95.7 The Fan!):
4. The wide receiver room competition
The wide receiving corps took a jolt on Tuesday, as Jayden Higgins left practice with an apparent leg injury. Ultimately, he was diagnosed with a torn ACL, a devastating blow to the Texans’ receiving corps. With Higgins now out, Jaylin Noel missing most of camp with multiple injuries, and Tank Dell still recovering from his knee injury of over a year ago, snaps will be available for Xavier Hutchinson, Justin Watson, Jared Wayne, and rookie Lewis Bond. All of these players have flashed in camp, and barring a trade, there will be at least one or two touch cuts in this room.
3. Rookies
So far, so good for most of the Texans’ 2026 rookie class. If you’re looking to keep eyes on some of the first year guys on Thursday night, you should come away encouraged. First round pick Keylan Rutledge will almost certainly start on the offensive line, with the actual position being the only question, guard or center. Second round pick Kayden McDonald is still trying to make a splash, and show why the Texans traded up for him. Their other second round pick, tight end Marlin Klein, looked great in his debut. Among the other rookies, Kamari Ramsey, fifth round safety out of USC, made the most favorable impression last Thursday, garnering the highest grade of any rookie on Pro Football Focus’ player scoring, with a 94.6 grade.
2. Brock Bowers
Among Raiders to keep an eye on in this game, Bowers tops the list for me. In just a couple seasons, the tight end out of Georgia has established himself as, not just one of the best tight ends in the game, but one of the best weapons in the sport. With a wide receiving corps that is, and I’m being kind here, underwhelming, the Raiders will look to Bowers for over 150 targets this season. This should be a fun coverage challenge for the Texans’ linebackers and safeties. Keep an eye on linebacker Henry To’o To’o, who had his worst game of the season against the Raiders last year in December. He’ what’s’s got some incentive to perform well tonight.
1. Offensive line, what the hell’s going on?
Right now, there are only two things along the offensive line of which I am certain — Aireontae Ersery will start at left tackle, and KEYLAND Rutledge will start somewhere, either at guard or center. Beyond that, the Texans are mixing and matching all over the place, with players shifting in between strings on the depth chart, and then within combinations of five, shifting from left to right, series to series. I think the team probably has a good idea as to which line or ten guys are going to make the 53 man roster. It seems like they have zero clue who the starting five will be against Buffalo in Week 1.
