The Houston Texans activated tight end Jordan Thomas off the reserve/injured list on Thursday ahead of their Week 12 encounter with the Indianapolis Colts at NRG Stadium.
To make room for the second-year tight end from Mississippi State, the club waived defensive end Joel Heath and receiver Steven Mitchell.
Thomas caught 20 passes for 215 yards and four touchdowns, all in the red zone, as a sixth-round rookie last year. In 2019, the Texans have relied on tight ends Jordan Akins, taken in the third round of 2018, along with Darren Fells to provide big-bodied targets for quarterback Deshaun Watson in the red zone.
The 6-5, 277-pound tight end sustained a rib injury in preseason that landed him on injured reserve shortly before the club’s cut down to a mandatory 53-man roster on Aug. 31. With Thomas’ return, the Texans will have another large target to feature in the red zone or on critical third down attempts.