Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
These are the players with injury designations for the Colts and Texans.
The Indianapolis Colts (0-0) and Houston Texans (0-0) released their final injury reports with designations Friday ahead of the Week 1 matchup at NRG Stadium.
The Colts had one player ruled out and one player listed as questionable while the Texans had one player listed as doubtful and one player listed as questionable on their final injury report. Both injury reports were pretty light all things considered.
Here are the players with injury designations entering the Week 1 game:
The Houston Texans released their final injury report of Week 1, and DE Mario Addison is doubtful for the Indianapolis Colts.
The Houston Texans released their final injury report of Week 1 as they prepare to face the Indianapolis Colts Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Central Time at NRG Stadium.
Defensive end Rasheem Green (thigh) remained listed as a non-participant in Friday’s practice. Similarly, defensive end Mario Addison (thigh), who was a limited participant on Wednesday and downgraded to a non-participant on Thursday, remained a non-participant in Friday’s practice.
Green was listed as questionable for Sunday. Addison is lifted as doubtful.
For the Colts, linebacker Shaquille Leonard (back), who was initially listed as a full participant in Wednesday’s report, was downgraded to a limited participant on Thursday and remained that way in Friday’s practice.
Tackle Dennis Kelly (knee) was a limited participant on Wednesday and Thursday, but managed to be a full participant in Friday’s practice.
Leonard is listed as out. Kelly is listed as questionable.
For more information on the Colts’ injury situation, check out the Colts Wire.
The Houston Texans released their second injury report of Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts, and Mario Addison was downgraded to non-participant.
The Houston Texans released their second injury report of Week 1 as they prepare to face the Indianapolis Colts Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Central Time at NRG Stadium.
Defensive end Rasheem Grant (thigh) remained listed as a non-participant in Thursday’s practice. However, defensive end Mario Addison (thigh), who was a limited participant on Wednesday, was downgraded to a non-participant on Thursday.
For the Colts, tackle Dennis Kelly (knee) was still a full participant. Linebacker Shaquille Leonard (back), who was initially listed as a limited participant in Wednesday’s report, was upgraded to a full participant on Thursday.
For more information on the Colts’ injury situation, check out the Colts Wire.
The Houston Texans released their first injury report of Week 1 as they gear up to face the Indianapolis Colts.
The Houston Texans released their first injury report of Week 1 as they prepare to face the Indianapolis Colts Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Central Time at NRG Stadium.
One can tell that the Texans’ injury report has to be from the start of the season as there were only two names to report: defensive ends Mario Addison (thigh) and Rasheem Green (thigh)
Green did not participate in practice. Addison was a limited participant.
For the Colts, tackle Dennis Kelly (knee) and linebacker Shaquille Leonard (back) were on the list. Kelly was a limited participant in practice while Leonard was a full participant.
For more information on the Colts’ injury situation, check out the Colts Wire.
The Houston Texans’ success starts with the defensive line, according to coach Lovie Smith.
The Houston Texans got down to the basics on the first day of training camp Friday at Houston Methodist Training Center.
The Texans will have two days of “ramp up” before taking a break Sunday. On Monday, the Texans will kickoff the first day of August with their first week of padded practices, which will give the coaches a true evaluation of where the offensive and defensive lines are at.
According to coach Lovie Smith, the Texans, who play a four-man front in their Tampa 2 scheme, will have at least linemen in uniform on game days.
“We will at least dress, at a minimum eight linemen,” Smith told reporters. “They will all play. We are going to have a starter but everybody, fresh guys, playing hard. The veteran guys on the line that you talked about, yes. Jerry Hughes, Mario Addison, I know Malik Collins has played a little bit.”
Hughes and Addison, both of whom come over from the Buffalo Bills, where defensive line coach Jacques Cesaire worked as an assistant defensive line coach, provide veteran leadership and also experience in the rotation. Houston brought back Collins at 3-technique defensive tackle, one of the significant roles in the Tampa 2.
The one defensive lineman who will have the spotlight on him throughout the season is third-year defensive end Jonathan Greenard. The former 2020 third-round pick from Florida had 8.0 sacks for the Texans through 12 games in 2021. Greenard and the Texans will be eligible to discuss a possible contract extension after the 2022 season, and Greenard can put himself in great negotiating position coming off a double-digit sack season.
“This is a big year for Jonathan Greenard, eight sacks whatever year, part-time, he is healthy now,” said Smith. “In order for us to have success, I talk about playing better defense, it starts with our defensive line.”
If the Texans are able to succeed with the defensive line, the results should resound throughout the rest of the team.
Houston Texans DT Maliek Collins no longer has to be the wise veteran in the DL room with the arrival of Mario Addison and Jerry Hughes.
Maliek Collins may have turned 27 years old on April 8, but the former Dallas Cowboys 2016 third-round pick has gotten younger.
The Houston Texans added defensive ends Mario Addison and Jerry Hughes after the draft, and the addition of the 34-year-old and 33-year-old have made Collins just another one of the guys in the defensive line room.
“Those two guys, they are so accomplished, and doing what they done did; the sack totals they done had in their career,” Collins told reporters after organized team activities on June 7 at Houston Methodist Training Center. “I’m just striving to be — to get those type of numbers and striving to be around for 12 and 13 years.”
Addison has tallied 67.0 career sacks through 11 seasons while Jerry Hughes has gathered 58.0. Collins has just 17.0, although he plays inside as a three technique defensive tackle as opposed to on the edge as his older teammates.
What enthuses Collins about his second year with the Texans is familiarity with coach Lovie Smith’s Tampa 2 scheme, which is very similar to what Collins’ original draft team ran from 2016-19 under then-defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli, who was Smith’s defensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears from 2010-12. The Texans have added a new blend with defensive line coach Jacques Cesaire, who was the Buffalo Bills’ assistant defensive line coach and worked with Addison and Hughes.
“He know what it takes, every day,” said Collins. “I mean, it’s nothing like having a coach that’s played before, and especially that’s played your position. I mean, I think it’s huge.”
While Addison and Hughes are the old guys in the defensive line room, Collins still takes the opportunity to impart wisdom and advice upon third-year defensive tackle Ross Blacklock and second-year defensive tackle Roy Lopez. Collins is buoyed by their development over the offseason.
Said Collins: “I love it. I just try to pay attention to what we’re doing up front. As long as we are doing our job up front, putting pressure on quarterbacks, getting the quarterback and trampling the run on the way to the quarterback, we just try to make their job as simple as it has to be.”
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The “Texans Talk Podcast” takes a look at how the Houston Texans’ roster has a nice blend of veterans and rookies compared to the past couple seasons.
The “Texans Talk Podcast” is back and hosts John Crumper and Mark Lane take a look at how the Houston Texans roster is graduating from a veteran-heavy roster to one that is counting on youth — quite the contrast to 2021 when the Texans had the oldest roster in the NFL with an average age of 21.
John and Mark also discuss how refreshing it is to not hear a lot of news surrounding Davis Mills — compared to Washington where Carson Wentz’s every throw is examined in organized team activities.
Be sure to subscribe to the “Texans Talk Podcast” on Apple, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and iHeart to stay up to date on the latest news and commentary with the Texans.
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Houston Texans defensive tackle Maliek Collins spelled out why he allowed defensive end Mario Addison to take No. 97 from him.
Houston Texans defensive tackle Maliek Collins is sporting a new jersey number for 2022.
The former Dallas Cowboys 2016 third-round pick has gone back to his jersey number from his days with the NFC East club. Collins will be wearing No. 96 for the first time since 2019, and it took some persuasion from incoming defensive end Mario Addison for him to make the switch.
“He wanted it (worse) than me,” Collins told reporters Tuesday after organized team activities at Houston Methodist Training Center. “He sent a wire. I got more sacks in 96 than 97, so I feel like it’s a little bit of luck being back in my old number. Thought it’d be better for me.”
Collins generated 14.5 sacks wearing No. 96 from 2016-19, including a career-high 5.0 as a rookie.
Perhaps more so than what jersey number he wore, Collins played in a Tampa 2 scheme in Dallas similar to what the Texans are deploying. The defensive coordinator at the time was Rod Marinelli, who was coach Lovie Smith’s defensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears from 2010-12.
Collins produced 2.5 sacks through 15 games with Houston as he returned to a familiar scheme, and it was the sense of greatness that attracted him back to the Texans.
“I think we’re building something special here and I wanted to be a part of that,” said Collins.
The 27-year-old also established his roots in Texas. The only time Collins played pro football outside of the Lone Star State was in 2020 when he signed with the Las Vegas Raiders, where Marinelli had been hired as defensive line coach under coach Jon Gruden.
Said Collins on why he signed with the Texans: “Family. My kids are here. I mean, it’s just I love the atmosphere. It’s a great place for me and my family.”
The Texans are hopeful Collins can have another big year in No. 96 while living the dream in Texas.
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DEs Jerry Hughes and Mario Addison hope to instill an “alpha male mentality” for the Houston Texans defensive line.
Defensive ends Mario Addison and Jerry Hughes have a combined 23 seasons in the NFL.
The former Buffalo Bills are turning the page on their careers after spending the last two seasons with the AFC East club. As Addison and Hughes come to the Houston Texans, they are the old guys in the defensive line room at ages 34 and 33.
The Texans seemingly have a dominant edge rusher already in defensive end Jonathan Greenard, who tallied 8.0 sacks last season, the most since 2019 when outside linebacker Whitney Mercilus recorded 7.5.
Hughes and Addison have a goal in mind with the young Texans defensive line.
“Bring that sharp mentality to this team,” Hughes told reporters on June 1 after organized team activities at Houston Methodist Training Center. “We have got a very young defensive line, so myself as well as Mario Addison, we try to emphasize having that alpha male mentality up front. We dictate what the offense is going to do, not really settling for just being in our gaps. We want to be able to go out there and make plays, be around the ball, causing turnovers. We understand the importance of the ball.”
Takeaways are the chief tenet coach Lovie Smith preaches. As defensive coordinator for the Texans in 2021, Smith was able to get his unit to gather 25, tied with the Los Angeles Rams for the 10th-most in the NFL. The Texans were the only team with a losing record to rank in the top-10 in takeaways.
“Coach Smith talks about it every day during team meetings, so for us just being that game-changer, being that force on the field,” said Hughes. “I feel like that’s something my game has been about my whole 12 years throughout the league. So, just trying to show those guys that we can be a difference-maker on every down, really. If the offense is out there and we have four guys on the field, let’s just go out there and let’s hunt.”
Hughes and Addison had 18.5 sacks between the two of them during their Buffalo years. More importantly than getting sacks, the older veterans want to establish a mentality that translates to explosive defensive plays.
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DE Jerry Hughes says he signed with the Houston Texans due to the chance to reunite with DE Mario Addison and DL coach Jacques Cesaire.
The 2022 offseason brought ambiguity for Jerry Hughes.
The Buffalo Bills defensive end didn’t know where he would end up playing his 13th season in the NFL.
As the offseason dragged on, the Houston Texans became an attractive destination — not so much because the former Sugar Land Stephen F. Austin High School product would get to play for his hometown team, but because some former Buffalo Bills influences were there.
Assistant defensive line coach Jacques Cesaire took the promotion to defensive line coach under new coach Lovie Smith. The Texans also signed former Bills defensive end Mario Addison, who Smith actually worked with in 2011 with the Chicago Bears.
When Addison signed with the Texans, Hughes had to see what compelled him to go to Houston.
“Mario signed probably about a week before me and then once I saw his news break across, I was watching one of the local channels here, just seeing his name, it threw me off,” Hughes told reporters on June 1 after organized team activities at Houston Methodist Training Center.
When Hughes was able to get a hold of Addison, his former Buffalo teammate was raving about Smith’s Tampa 2 scheme.
“I gave him a call and he was talking scheme,” Hughes said. “I’m a big football guy. I love to hear the scheme and as far as what he was saying about Lovie was talking about, about how we get to play fast, we are not thinking, we’re reading keys, getting off the ball, that’s something that I wanted to be a part of.”
Naturally the opportunity to play in the greater Houston area was appealing for Hughes, who will turn 34 on Aug. 13.
Said Hughes: “Then being home, being able to do that from home and still be a part of my kid’s life where I can take them to the swim team practice and things like that, that’s just like icing on the cake right now. So, I’m just having a great time.”
The Texans are hopeful that part of Hughes’ great time with the club includes fortifying the pass rush. Hughes collected 2.0 through 17 games last year with the Bills.
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