The Texans’ slow start just got a jolt of good news.
Houston is sitting at 0-4 and remains one of the few winless teams in the 2026 NFL season, a rough opening stretch for a roster that entered the year with bigger expectations. Three of those four losses have been competitive, but that hasn’t made the standings any easier to swallow.
The real development, though, came on the injury front. Houston has designated wide receiver Tank Dell to return from IR, opening the door for his comeback after a long, brutal recovery.
“The #Texans have designated WR Tank Dell to return from IR. A huge day for Dell, who tore his ACL, LCL and MCL, dislocated his knee and suffered meniscus damage in a catastrophic injury in 2024. He has worked his way all the way back,” reported NFL insider Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team on X, formerly Twitter.
Dell’s injury in 2024 was severe enough to wipe out all of last season and keep him out for the first several games of 2026. At one point, there were real questions about whether he would get back on the field at all.
Instead, he’s spent the past several months grinding through the rehab process and building back toward game readiness. Now the Texans appear ready to get him back into the mix soon.
Before the injury, Dell looked like he was climbing fast. He had become one of C.J. Stroud’s preferred targets early in his career, and Houston will now see whether that connection can pick up where it left off once Dell is cleared to return.
In Other News...
George Pickens Just Added To The Texans Secondary's Awkward Problem
George Pickens had plenty of reason to respect what the Texans brought up front after the Cowboys game, and he made sure to point it out afterward. Asked about Houstons defense, the Dallas receiver credited the Texans pass rush, naming Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter as the players who stood out most to him in the trenches.
What he did not do was extend the same praise to Houstons secondary, even when the conversation gave him the chance. For a Texans defense trying to establish itself as a complete unit, that kind of split reaction is the sort of postgame detail that lingers, because it suggests the front did its job while the back end still has something to prove. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Need DeMeco Ryans To Spark What This Defense Lacks
The Texans have stumbled to an 0-4 start, and the defense has become a major reason the season has gone sideways early. As Houston prepares for its Week 5 meeting with the Titans, DeMeco Ryans has moved to take a more direct role in fixing the unit, putting himself at the center of the effort to steady a group that has not yet looked like a cohesive whole.
Will Anderson Jr. has backed Ryans' approach, saying the head coach brings the kind of accountability the defense needs right now. For a team trying to stop an early slide, that combination of firmness and trust could matter as much as anything on the call sheet, especially with the Texans searching for a response that shows up in a divisional game. [Read more 🡒]
Texans Bring Back Former Titans Receiver Before A Notable Week 5 Test
The Texans added a familiar face to their roster this week, signing wide receiver Bryce Oliver to the 53-man group ahead of their Week 5 meeting with the Titans. Oliver had already spent time on Houstons practice squad, and his path back comes after two seasons in Tennessee before his release, giving the Texans an extra receiver with some built-in familiarity as they get ready for a divisional matchup.
It is a move that gives Houston a little more flexibility in a receiver room that has already been changing, especially with special teams value carrying plenty of weight for the bottom of the roster. The timing also makes the decision a little more interesting, with the Texans lining up for a game against the team Oliver just left behind and more personnel movement still possible as the week unfolds. [Read more 🡒]