Tag: O.J. Howard

Alabama football countdown to kickoff: 88 days

We are just 88 days away from the start of the 2023 football season for the Alabama Crimson Tide!

The Alabama Crimson Tide will take the field for the 2023 college football season in 88 days, as Middle Tennessee State visits Bryant Denny Stadium on Sept. 2.

Here at Roll Tide Wire, we will be counting down the days until [autotag]Nick Saban[/autotag] and his team take the field.

Today, with 88 days remaining, we will take a look at one of the best players to wear No. 88 for the Crimson Tide, [autotag]O.J. Howard[/autotag].

Howard put together a fantastic career for Alabama collecting 114 receptions, 1,726 yards, and seven touchdowns from 2013 to 2016.

Currently, junior tight end Miles Kitselman wears No. 88 for the Crimson Tide and should be in the rotation this fall.

O.J. Howard’s Photo Gallery

The last 20 players selected at No. 19 overall

There have been some notable players and some others lost to time at the No. 19 spot.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are picking at No. 19 in 2023, and they’ll hope to land a franchise player as they do every year. But how many times does that happen at that pick?

We’ve compiled a list of the last 20 picks at No, 19, which includes the Bucs’ O.J. Howard pick in 2017. There are some recognizable names and some forgotten to time, but take a look at all of them below:

27 Days, 27 Picks: TE O.J. Howard

Today’s player in our 27 Days, 27 Picks series is the first one in the series who no longer plays for Tampa Bay:

In 27 Days, 27 Picks, Bucs Wire will analyze the last 27 Tampa Bay Buccaneers first-round draft picks, one for each day leading up to the 2023 NFL draft. We’ll take a look at the player’s college stats, their pre-draft numbers (either via the NFL Combine or their Pro Day), their NFL stats, some player footage and analysis at the end on whether the pick itself was a good one.

We’ve already done a rundown on TE [autotag]O.J. Howard[/autotag] recently, but we’ll go a bit more in-depth here. Howard was lauded as one of the top prospects in the NFL draft in 2017, but what initially appeared as a boon for the Bucs turned into a guessing game of what could have been.

Check out the rundown on Howard down below:

Report: Former Texans TE O.J. Howard visiting the Raiders

Former Houston Texans tight end O.J. Howard is visiting with the Las Vegas Raiders.

O.J. Howard is testing the market.

According to Aaron Wilson from KPRC-TV, the former Houston Texans tight end is visiting with the Las Vegas Raiders.

Howard signed with the Texans on Sept. 2, 2022, to provide depth following Houston’s finalizing of their 53-man roster. Tight end Antony Auclair was placed on injured reserve, and Howard gave the Texans some flexibility at the position behind second-year Brevin Jordan, rookie Teagan Quitoriano, and Jordan Akins.

Howard caught 10 passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns in his 13 games with the Texans, 10 of which he started. The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2017 first-round pick had two catches for 38 yards and two touchdowns in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts, but never exceeded that production throughout the rest of the season.

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Raiders hosting free-agent TE O.J. Howard on Monday

Raiders hosting free-agent TE O.J. Howard on Monday

With Darren Waller off to New York and Foster Moreau still a free agent, the Raiders need some help at tight end. The expectation is that they will select their next TE1 in the 2023 NFL Draft, but they certainly could use some veteran help at the position.

The good news is that there are a lot of tight end options still on the market. And the Raiders are hosting one of those options on Monday on a free-agent visit.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, the Raiders are meeting with former first-round pick O.J. Howard on Monday. Howard last played with the Texans in 2022, starting 10 games.

Howard isn’t a big-time receiving threat, but he does have some usefulness as a blocker. Considering the Raiders just need a veteran on the roster, don’t be surprised if this deal ultimately happens in the next few days.

Howard has appeared in 72 games during his NFL career, starting 56 times. However, he’s totaled just 35 receptions over the last three seasons for a combined 426 yards and five touchdowns. Howard will turn 29 during the 2023 NFL season.

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One potential free agent for every position on the Lions offense

One potential free agent for every position on the Detroit Lions offense

There’s always room to improve on an NFL roster, and that surely holds true for the Detroit Lions as free agency approaches.

After two seasons as the general manager for the Lions, Brad Holmes has shown he can make strong signings without breaking the bank or being too aggressive. With that in mind, there are plenty of upcoming free agents from other teams that could fit in well with Detroit’s offense.

Texans vs. Colts inactives: TE O.J. Howard inactive

The Houston Texans listed TE O.J. Howard as among their inactives for Week 18 at the Indianapolis Colts.

The Houston Texans announced their inactives for their Week 18 tilt with the Indianapolis Colts Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Central Time from Lucas Oil Stadium.

Center-guard Jimmy Morrissey (concussion) and receiver Phillip Dorsett (hamstring) were already ruled out for the game on Friday. Cornerback Steven Nelson (illness) was ruled out on Saturday.

Tight end O.J. Howard, quarterback Kyle Allen, and defensive tackle Thomas Booker were declared inactive.

For the Colts, defensive end Rashod Berry, safety Nick Cross, quarterback Nick Foles (ribs), center Wesley French, cornerback Stephon Gilmore (wrist), tight end Kylen Granson (ankle), and defensive tackle Chris Williams were declared inactive for Week 18.

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Texans vs. Chiefs inactives: O.J. Howard down, Mason Schreck up in Week 15

The Houston Texans declared their inactives for Week 15 against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Houston Texans announced their inactives ahead of their Week 15 encounter with the Kansas City Chiefs.

QB Kyle Allen, WR Nico Collins (foot), WR Brandin Cooks (calf), CB Steven Nelson (foot), LB Garret Wallow, G Kenyon Green (ankle), and TE O.J. Howard were declared inactive for Week 15.

TE Mason Schreck was called up from the practice squad as a standard elevation. Houston also elevated CB Will Redmond.

Kansas City declared DE Malik Herring, QB Shane Buechele, DE Joshua Kaindoh, T Geron Christian, and T Darian Kinnard inactive for the Texans.

DT Chris Jones was questionable with an illness and did not practice Friday. Jones will be active against the Texans.

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Texans were confident TE O.J. Howard could play away from the ball ahead of Week 1

TE O.J. Howard showed enough in his abilities away from the football to let the Houston Texans know he was worthy of a Week 1 activation.

The Buffalo Bills gave up on O.J. Howard.

The AFC East club cut Howard at the end of preseason as NFL teams had to finalize their 53-man rosters on Aug. 30. The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2017 first-round pick from Alabama needed to clear waivers before the Bills could sign him back to their practice squad.

One of the advantages of the Texans having finished 4-13 last year is they are No. 3 in the waiver wire priority — kind of like how they were the No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft. As such, the Texans were able to make a claim on Howard and only have to wait for him to pass by the Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions.

Even with the fourth preseason game nixed since 2021, Howard going from being signed by Houston to playing in Week 1 10 days later was quite a time crunch. Nevertheless Houston believed Howard was up for the challenge.

“First off, you have to be able to play without the ball, regardless of what position you play as a skill player in our offense,” offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton told reporters Sept. 15. “We wanted somebody that was a willing and able blocker that could also at times release from the line of scrimmage, run routes and make the plays down field. He was able to do that in the first game as a Texan.”

Howard did not disappoint as he caught two passes for 38 yards and a touchdown. The 6-6, 251-pounder was an effective red zone target for second-year quarterback Davis Mills.

“We were excited to see O.J. go out and make some plays for us, some big plays, catch two touchdowns and we feel good about the overall depth and talent that we have in our tight end group,” said Hamilton.

Houston takes on the Denver Broncos Sunday at 3:25 p.m. Central Time from Empower Field at Mile High, where Howard will have another chance to show how much at home he is in the Texans’ offense.

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Secret Superstars for Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar features Week 1’s great underrated players on his Secret Superstars team.

There are all kinds of reasons that NFL players are underrated.

Perhaps they’re in systems that don’t best show their skills. Maybe they’re buried on a depth chart. Or, they’re in somebody’s doghouse, and their coaches can’t see their potential. Sometimes, young players haven’t quite put it all together, but there are enough flashes to make you sit up and take notice, and when it does work, it’s all good.

Week 1 of the 2022 regular season features players at every position who showed up and showed out despite their underrated statuses, and here at Touchdown Wire, it’s our job to point them out.

Here are the Secret Superstars for Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season.

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