Owen Daniels Game-Time Decision, Other Texans Confirmed Out

Your Houston Texans may have to face the Bears without one of their (truthfully, probably their No. 2 option in the passing game) weapons on offense. Gary Kubiak, via Yahoo Sports, explains:

Texans coach Gary Kubiak says tight end Owen Daniels was ''very limited' in practice with a back injury on Friday and could miss Sunday's game in Chicago.

Daniels, Houston's second-leading receiver, sat out practice on Wednesday and Thursday. Kubiak says he'll be a ''game-time decision'' when the Texans (7-1) play the Bears (7-1) on Sunday night.

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Daniels leads the Texans with five TD receptions and ranks second in receptions (37) behind Andre Johnson. If Daniels can't play, Kubiak says ''it affects us a great deal,'' because of how much he relies on tight ends in his offense.

Downer, no? Let me top that worry with some sprinkles of sadness:

Kubiak said nose tackle Shaun Cody (ribs) and backup running back Ben Tate (hamstring) will definitely sit out.

In fairness, the news that Cody and Tate won't play does not come as a surprise. But the idea of no Owen Daniels? That's big, particularly because the Bears' Cover 2 is prime for the sort of underneath work at which OD excels. If OD can't go, Garrett Graham and James Casey are going to have to step up in a colossal way.

Does the possibility of an Owen Danielsless Sunday night affect your confidence in the Texans this week?