Houston Texans Newswire: DeAndre Hopkins Could Make All The Difference

Houston Texans News

Hopkins could make all the difference.

Mike Tanier, of Sports On Earth, had his first thoughts after a week of preseason games. One of the few things he was impressed with the play of Texans' rookie wideout DeAndre Hopkins. Tanier elaborated that Hopkins' 34-yard touchdown grab is type of ‘flash play' that will make all the difference come playoff time (skip to #11).

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Cushing out of practice.

Brian Cushing was held of today's practice because he was feeling under the weather.  Coach Kubiak chimed in with:

"He came in sick this morning," Kubiak said. "We've had a few sick, and today's his turn I guess."

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Wood looks for his chance.

The Texans backfield is set at the number one and two spots with Arian Foster and Ben Tate. Rookie Cierre Wood is gunning for that number three spot. The former Notre Dame running back talked about his performance in Minnesota (10 carries for 59 yards).

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Texans keep it closed.

The Chronicle's Science Writer, Eric Berger, takes a look at the Texans not opening the stadium roof during games since 2011. Berger goes deeper into the history of the roof itself. An interesting read; it may or may not behind a pay wall.

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Around the League

Clark Finds New Home.

Since 2009, when Dallas Clark had a 1,100-yard season, he has struggled to get past the 500-yard mark. In his first season in Tampa Bay, he caught 47 passes for 435 yards. Now, the 10-year veteran has found a third home in Baltimore. The Ravens recently lost Dennis Pitta for the season, leaving Ed Dickson as the main target.

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Griffin returns to practice.

Robert Griffin III will return to 11-on-11 practice today at Redskins camp. RGII isn't happy with just practicing again; he wants to play in the third game of the preseason. I'm not saying they should go full Derek Rose with Griffin, but I wouldn't let him decide when he'll play. That's why Washington is in this situation in the first place.

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Charles avoids disaster.

The Chiefs' all-world running back, Jamaal Charles, was carted to the locker room today. Being carted off is the universal sign for "this might be bad."  X-rays came back negative on Charles' foot and he was diagnosed with a strained foot.

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A new challenger enters.

The Saints have come to an agreement with Patrick Crayton; New Orleans is still hoping to find a solution to their number three wide receiver slot.  This comes after the loss of Joe Morgan, who tore an ACL this offseason. Crayton, who played under Payton with the Cowboys, will still have to battle fifth-round pick Kenny Stills for the job.

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Blackmon Ready for Return.

If you were to look up Justin Blackmon in his high school yearbook, I'm sure you would find "Most Likely to Become Chad Johnson" under his picture. The uber-talented receiver may not be worth the trouble. Blackmon has returned to the active roster after a groin surgery.

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NFL, NFLPA one step closer to HGH testing.

With all the news out of baseball over the resent HGH suspensions, the NFL is also taken action. The NFL and NFLPA have formally agreed on a protocol for a study as precursor to full human growth hormone testing.