Former Texas defensive end Charles Omenihu is poised for a breakout season after his impressive performance against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday.
The Houston Texans selected Omenihu in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL draft. Now that longtime Texans defensive end J.J. Watt is a member of the Arizona Cardinals, Omenihu is on the verge of a career year.
On Saturday, the former Longhorn showcased why. In the first quarter of the Texans preseason game against the Cowboys, Omenihu recorded his first sack on quarterback Cooper Rush.
Charles Omenihu past the TE for a sack pic.twitter.com/eCAlxbZf9X
— Rivers McCown (@riversmccown) August 22, 2021
To open the second quarter, Omenihu once again recorded a sack on Rush. The Texans went on to win 20-14 and Omenihu was awarded the first game ball of his career after recording two sacks and a fumble recovery in the first half.
.@charless_94 racking those sacks up đź‘€ pic.twitter.com/SzLyAKvc5e
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) August 22, 2021
In 2020, Omenihu played just 49 percent of the overall defensive snaps for the Texans where he recorded a career-high 16 quarterback hits and four sacks. Only five players have more sacks in franchise history in their first two NFL seasons than Omenihu (7).
Houston will have a productive group of pass rushers this season between Omenihu, Jacob Martin, Maliek Collins, Whitney Mercilus, Shaq Lawson and Jordan Jenkins.