The Houston Texans are right in the thick of the playoff race in the AFC. Despite a loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 12, they still have a 6-5 record on the season with a chance to solidify their spot in the standings in Week 13 against the Denver Broncos.
However, the game wasn’t all that the Texans lost against the Jaguars. According to sources at ESPN, offensive lineman Tytus Howard is going to miss the remainder of the season because of a knee injury suffered Sunday afternoon.
Howard needed assistance getting off the field in the first quarter of the game and was replaced by rookie guard Juice Scruggs, who had just been activated off the injured reserve on Saturday. He will have to undergo surgery, forcing him to the sidelines.
This is a huge blow for the Texans, as replacing a starting lineman at this point in the season is never an easy thing to do. Houston put an emphasis on improving that unit this offseason to make life as easy as possible for rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, so this is a major setback losing Howard.
NFL News & Rumors: Tytus Howard, Juice Scruggs, Houston Texans Updates
The only positive, if you can even call it that, is that the Texans already have experience playing without Howard this season. This is the second long-term injury that he has had to deal with, as he missed the first four weeks of the season with a broken hand.
This is certainly not what Howard or the Texans envisioned for his first season after signing a nice extension last summer. He was rewarded with a three-year, $56 million extension, making one of the better bookends in the NFL along with star left tackle, Laremy Tunsil.
Howard had been playing right tackle, but was moved to guard with Scruggs sidelined. Now that Howard is going to miss the remainder of the 2023 season, Scuggs, a second-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, should slide into his spot in the starting lineup.
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