Houston Texans Newswire: Let The Preseason Begin

Houston Texans News

"Reed returns to practice, gears up for Minnesota"

The kind of headline that gives you that little jolt in the morning to shake you out of the haze.

Until you remember, "There are two Reeds on the Houston Texans," and see that Brooks is the one who will be ready for the first preseason game this Friday.

Still good news and all, but I'm now tired again.

*****

Doesn't Gary Kubiak Sound Like A Dad Who Is About To Drop The, "I'm Not Mad, I'm Just Disappointed" Line?

Here is the Texans' head coach on Sam "One Job" Montgomery, who reported to his first ever pro training camp out of shape, and then immediately injured his ankle when he finally got on the field:

"I know he did a little bit today. He's just behind," head coach Gary Kubiak said. "It's going to take some time and we're trying to work him through the soreness of his ankle sprain and obviously he's not going to be a part of what we're doing this week I don't think. I may be premature in saying that, but a long way to go."

That was the second time Kubiak mentioned that Montgomery is behind. Last Thursday, a seemingly frustrated Kubiak said Montgomery was "way behind the team."

Not so, says Montgomery, who believes the pen is mightier than the sword:

"Honestly, I feel like I'm right there with the team," Montgomery said. "You know, I come out there every day with my notepad, my book and I take a lot of mental reps, write down everything, do what I'm supposed to do and I take advantage of every last opportunity I'm given."

Montgomery will not be ready to play on Friday.

*****

Arian Foster's Back + Ben Tate's Groin = Chance For The Other D.J. To Shine.

With the revelation that Arian Foster is currently suffering from a slightly concerning mysterious back ailment, the fact that his calf was originally cited as the reason he is sitting out training camp is a strangely underreported issue. The Texans were actually down their top two running backs over the weekend, as Ben Tate tweaked his contract year groin late last week. Tate may have returned to practice on Tuesday for a walkt-hrough, but it remains to be seen whether or not the coaches will push him to be ready to go against Minnesota.

That means Friday may be an opportunity to find the next Chris Ogbonnaya, preseason Texans legend. There are four people competing for the third string spot behind the (I hope) two-headed beast of Foster and Tate, but at the moment, Gary Kubiak seems the highest on undrafted rookie free agent pickup Dennis Johnson.

Here is a brief description of Johnson's strong suits from State of the Texans last week:

One of the rookies that is getting the biggest buzz out of camp for his ability to make big plays. People like the undersized back that brings some excitment to the field and that is what Johnson has when he touches the ball. He can accelerate when he sees the hole and make players miss in open field. He is very strong for his 5-5 frame and is a hard target to hit when he has the football. His vision is only getting better with every run he has in the zone scheme and the Texans are learning his strengths as camp progresses.

As I did not read that until this morning, here are two things I did not know about Johnson as of last night:

1) That he existed.

2) That the Texans had picked up a UDFA who set SEC records for kickoff returns (119) and yards (2,784) while at Arkansas.

I'm sure the second point will be the reason Joe Marciano eventually leads the charge to cut him. After all, why would Joe want to hang on to a total horse in the return game when he's short and excelled in the best conference in college football?

Trindon Holliday 104 yard kickoff return (via drewsky684)

Fellow UDFA Cierre Wood, the most likely to beat out D.J. for the role of this year's Justin Forsett, would very much like to see Johnson get Hollidayed.

*****

Other Injury Updates

From Deepi Sidhu, Mothership reporter/near dead ringer for my half-Pakistani girlfriend who is also obsessed with the Texans:

- Left guard Wade Smith may be out a few days with a bone bruise in his knee.

- Cornerback Brandon Harris is day-to-day after pulling himself out of practice Tuesday with a hip flexor.

- Inside linebacker Tim Dobbins left practice Monday due to a sore shoulder (likely suffered while doing home improvements this summer), and may not be available for the Vikings on Friday.

*****

Around The NFL

You Knew This Was Coming.

Football on your Phone - Manning Brothers Music Video (via DIRECTV)