Tag: Texans center

Texans Wire 3-round mock draft 5.0: Houston selects a center

.@johnhcrumpler provides his fifth mock draft of the offseason as the Houston Texans work through the first three rounds of the 2023 NFL draft.

The Houston Texans have sailed through the first wave of free agency, and general manager Nick Caserio has the team looking vastly improved to kickoff the new league year.

Tight end Dalton Schultz, wide receiver Robert Woods, safety Jimmie Ward, defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, guard Shaq Mason, and linebacker Denzel Perryman all enter Houston as immediately projected starters and represent a talent foundation that should have coach DeMeco Ryans in a far stronger position to succeed.

The major talent additions are expected to come in April’s NFL draft. Houston has 12 picks to make including five picks within the first two days. Caserio’s signings have given fans a good idea of what direction the team may look to go and serve as a natural launch point.

Texans re-sign center Scott Quessenberry

The Houston Texans have re-signed Scott Quessenberry, who started 16 games at center in 2022.

The Houston Texans have maintained consistency at their center position.

The club announced March 13 that the re-signing of Scott Quessenberry is official, which brings back the 6-3, 310-pound offensive lineman for a second season in Houston.

Quessenberry was thrust into the role of starting center when Justin Britt was unexpectedly placed on the non-football illness list after Week 1 and essentially retired. The former Los Angeles Chargers 2018 fifth-round pick started all 16 games for the Texans after that point.

With the Chargers, Quessenberry saw limited action as he only started in 10 of his 63 games active with the AFC West club.

Quessenberry incurred one holding penalty and one false start penalty during his 992 snaps with the Texans last season.

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Texans release C Justin Britt, sign DB Kendall Sheffield to active roster

The Houston Texans have released center Justin Britt and signed cornerback Kendall Sheffield to the active roster.

The Houston Texans continue to eat around the edges as they prepare for their free agency moves when the new league year begins March 15.

The Texans released center Justin Britt Friday. The former Seattle Seahawks 2014 second-round pick played in the season opener against the Indianapolis Colts and was placed on the non-football illness list thereafter. Britt never played another down for the Texans last season, and Scott Quessenberry played the next 16 games at center.

Sheffield spent last offseason with the Texans but was placed on injured reserve at the end of preseason. Houston released him on Oct. 11, and the Dallas Cowboys kept the former Atlanta Falcons 2019 fourth-round cornerback on their practice squad through the end of the regular season.

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Texans sign C Jimmy Morrissey to active roster, add G Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms to practice squad

The Houston Texans have signed C Jimmy Morrissey to the active roster and added guard Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms to the practice squad.

The Houston Texans fortified their center position by looking at what they already have in the building.

The Texans signed center Jimmy Morrissey from the practice squad to the active roster. Morrissey was active for five games last season as a rookie and started in four of them. The former Las Vegas Raiders 2021 seventh-round pick’s playing time last year came due to a knee injury to starting center Justin Britt.

The Texans filled their vacancy on the practice squad by adding former Jacksonville Jaguars guard Tre’Vour Wallace-Simms, who was also in the offseason program and training camp with the Texans.

Texans C Justin Britt out against the Broncos

Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith says that center Justin Britt will not play against the Denver Broncos in Week 2.

Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith says that starting center Justin Britt will not be available for the Denver Broncos in Week 2.

“Justin Britt will not play this week,” Smith told reporters Friday. “As I’ve told you, he’s been out for personal reasons. We’ll be able to give you more information a little bit more in the day, but he will not play this week.”

Because Britt has missed practice for the past three days, the Texans have had to explore backup options as a necessity.

“We have some different options,” said Smith. “I don’t go into starting lineups of exactly who’s going to play. I never will no matter what, but you kind of look at the roster a little bit. We got options, and we’ll look at our options and go from there.”

Scott Quessenberry has been taking first-team snaps with Britt absent. The Texans also have Jimmy Morrissey and Justin McCray available, both of whom started for Houston last season when Britt missed games due to a knee injury.

Said Smith: “Whenever a player can’t play for whatever reason you have to have a backup plan. We’ve practiced — Justin hasn’t practiced this week, so, we’ve kind of practiced that way, planned for that.”

Houston kicks off against the Broncos Sunday at 3:25 p.m. Central Time from Empower Field at Mile High.

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Texans C Justin Britt feels like offense can ‘run in any scenario’

Houston Texans center Justin Britt believes that the offense should be able to run the ball in any scenario when asked.

The Houston Texans’ offense is built around the running game.

However, the running game wasn’t too much of a factor in the team’s 20-20 tie with the Indianapolis Colts in Week 1 at NRG Stadium. The Texans mustered 77 yards on 28 carries, a 2.8 yards per carry. Rex Burkhead was the leading rusher with 14 carries for 40 yards while fourth-rounder Dameon Pierce, who was expected to give the run game a significant boost, had 11 carries for 33 yards.

Even though the Texans’ run game was lacking and wanting on Opening Day, center Justin Britt believes they still have the ability to establish their will in the ground game.

“We feel like we can run in any scenario,” Britt told reporters Sept. 13. “At the end of the day whatever play call is called, we try to execute it. However we get to the win, we get there. We have goals of hitting a certain amount of rushing yards or yards per rush. That matters to us. So whenever we don’t hit those, we’ll evaluate and see what we need to do better.”

With the Texans getting a tie rather than a win, especially after leading 20-3 in the fourth quarter, there is an invitation to feel pessimistic. Nevertheless Britt sees the tie as an opportunity for the Texans to carry the momentum of avoiding a loss into their Week 2 encounter with the Denver Broncos.

“In the first half, we were moving the ball down the field,” said Britt. “I thought until late in the game our protection was doing pretty well. We’ll pick at it and see. But I think for me personally and maybe as the group it’s just consistency and continuing it for the whole 60 minutes.”

The Texans are tied with the Colts for first place in the AFC South with both clubs sporting an 0-0-1 record. Houston kicks off at Denver at 3:25 p.m. Central Time from Empower Field at Mile High.

Texans C Justin Britt blames himself for offensive line miscommunication

Houston Texans center Justin Britt says that if there are any miscommunication issues with the offensive line, it starts with him.

The Houston Texans had two false start penalties in overtime, each on their only two drives of the extra period against the Indianapolis Colts in their 20-20 tie in Week 1 at NRG Stadium.

Right tackle Tytus Howard had a false start on a third-and-17 from the Houston 33-yard line that turned into a third-and-22 from Houston’s 28. The Texans didn’t convert and quarterback Davis Mills was sacked for a 4-yard loss.

Howard, along with left tackle Laremy Tunsil, mentioned after the game there were miscommunication issues along the line.

Center Justin Britt took responsibility for the five-man unit’s miscommunication problems on Tuesday when meeting with reporters.

“If there is a communication error, it starts with me being the voice of the O-line,” said Britt. “The guy who sets it all. I false started for something that shouldn’t have happened. I was late on a snap and Tytus false started, and again, that shouldn’t have happened. Just things like that. Just do better next time.”

Britt had the Texans’ second false start penalty in overtime. On a second-and-2 from the Houston 40, Britt had a pre-snap penalty that moved Houston back five yards. The Texans were able to overcome the penalty and keep the drive alive, which ultimately ended in the controversial decision from Lovie Smith to punt on fourth-and-3 from the Colts’ 49-yard line with 26 seconds remaining.

Houston has a chance to get on the same page with their offensive line communication when they take on the Denver Broncos Sunday at 3:25 p.m. Central Time at Empower Field at Mile High.

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Texans release C Jimmy Morrissey

The Houston Texans have released former Las Vegas Raiders center Jimmy Morrissey as they finalize their 53-man roster.

The Houston Texans are going with a different reserve center behind starter Justin Britt.

According to Aaron Wilson from the Pro Football Network, the Texans have released Jimmy Morrissey.

The Texans initially signed Morrissey off the Las Vegas Raiders’ practice squad last October due to injuries to Britt. However, Morrissey didn’t challenge Britt for the starting job and was also in a roster battle with Scott Quessenberry.

Wilson also reports that the Texans may look to add Morrissey back to their practice squad. However, with the lack of depth at center across the NFL, Morrissey could see himself in another city.

Texans C Justin Britt not letting knee injury slow down his play

Houston Texans center Justin Britt has worked his way back from knee injuries, but won’t allow them to make him play with any hesitation.

Justin Britt has had a long journey to get to the starting center job for the Houston Texans.

Britt, a former Seattle Seahawks 2014 second-round pick from Missouri, played in all but one game for the NFC West club through the 2018 season. In 2019, Britt was limited to eight games as he tore his ACL on Oct. 27 against the Atlanta Falcons.

The Seahawks released Britt during the 2020 offseason. The former Lebanon High School product had a tryout with the Green Bay Packers ahead of Week 1, and later worked out for the Kansas City Chiefs in their week leading up to the AFC Championship Game.

It wasn’t until the Texans took a chance and signed Britt in the 2021 offseason that he had a shot to revitalize his career.

Through 11 starts, Britt regained confidence at center. However, he missed six games due to knee injuries to the same knee where he tore his ACL in 2019.

At 31 years old, Britt is not going to let the knee issues generate any anxiety or hesitancy when it comes to his play.

“I mean, some of it’s inevitable and you’ve just got to go out there and play carefree and you can’t really worry about that,” Britt told reporters after the second day of training camp practice on July 30 at Houston Methodist Training Center.

There are small aspects that Britt pays attention to in order to ensure he is in his best playing condition.

“I show up really early in the morning so I have time to warm up the knees, get loose, stretch and make sure everything’s working properly,” Britt said. “Then just staying on top of the strength and conditioning. I mean, it’s a grind. It’s a battle. We are going to be going still February hopefully, so it’s just staying on top of that and building a routine and really buying into it.”

The Texans have Jimmy Morrissey and Justin McCray as backups at center. Morrissey started four games at center in 2021 as a rookie.

Texans re-sign center Justin Britt to 2-year contract

The Houston Texans are keeping center Justin Britt on the roster with a two-year contract.

The Houston Texans gave Justin Britt a chance to continue his NFL career in 2021, and now they are giving him a shot to keep it going.

According to Mark Berman from Fox 26 [KRIV-TV], the Texans are re-signing Britt. The former Seattle Seahawks 2014 second-round pick played 11 games for the Texans at center and started each of those games.

The contract is a two-year deal worth $9 million with a maximum value of $10.5 million per Aaron Wilson of the Pro Football Network.

Britt tore his ACL on Oct. 27, 2019 while playing his 87th regular season game for the Seahawks. At the end of the 2019 campaign, the Seahawks released the former Missouri product, and he spent 2020 out of football, even though the Green Bay Packers brought him in for a visit at the end of training camp and the Kansas City Chiefs worked him out during their playoff run.

Houston brought in Britt to provide stability at center as the club moved on from veteran Nick Martin.

On Jan. 10, the day after the Texans lost to the Tennessee Titans and posted a 4-13 record, Britt met with reporters and reflected on the 2021 season and his opportunity to keep playing pro football.

“I had a blast this year,” said Britt. “The wins and losses obviously speak for themselves, but aside from that, this group of guys, this staff, I had an enjoyable time coming off a year away from football. This is kind of everything I would want other than wins.

“Coming to work every week with this group of guys and to see how we grew and the steps we took, would I come back here? Yeah, if everything was right and the way it needed to be, I would love to come back here and be around these men again.”

Britt gets to return to work at NRG Stadium with a new coach in Lovie Smith. However, the offense will stay relatively the same with Pep Hamilton as offensive coordinator and Davis Mills expected to retain the starting quarterback job in his second season.