A couple of key players are back while a few are out with injury
4 observations from Texans practice Aug. 19
Aug 19, 2019, 2:01 pm
Bill O'Brien and DeAndre Hopkins
If you missed the observations from the Texans preseason game two you can find them right here
Nick Martin, Reader return
The Texans welcomed back starting center Nick Martin and defensive lineman D.J. Reader to practice. Reader was a terror, as he has been this preseason. It was just shells, no pads today, but Reader flashed right through the offensive line to disrupt the play.
Martin's return moved Zach Fulton back to guard. It will be interesting to see if Martin gets game action against the Cowboys. He could probably use the reps to catch up.
Tytus Howard and Matt Kalil are down, for now
O’Brien asked about Roderick Johnson: Lightyears of improvement from where he used to be. Good performance the other night. Wants to see him do it again.
— Cody Stoots (@Cody_Stoots) August 19, 2019
There was no work Monday from Tytus Howard and Matt Kalil.
Howard has a broken finger and will likely miss the rest of the preseason if I was guessing. Bill O'Brien said he wouldn't expect Howard to practice this week but he did expect him to be ready for the game week one against the Saints.
Kalil has worked sparingly recently. He practiced last Sunday and was off Monday. The team was off Tuesday and then Wednesday he worked against the Lions and said he was healthy. He hasn't practiced since and didn't play in the game against Detroit. O'Brien said he thinks the veteran could practice this week.
Roderick Johnson has been getting more snaps in place of Kalil and has held up nicely in his opportunities. Deshaun Watson said after the preseason game he is comfortable with Johnson at left tackle. Zach Fulton is the guy in place of Howard at guard. He has the ability to play all three inside slots and at this point he has played all three inside spots or at least practiced there.
The best Texans tight end: Jordan Akins
Jordan Akins started camp under the radar. Jordan Thomas had flashed the first few days. Kahale Warring was an exciting draft pick. Darren Fells was the blocking expert. Since then Thomas got hurt, Warring has barely been on the field, and Fells is still better at blocking than catching the ball.
Akins has gotten better and better each week. His hands have had a hiccup here or there but Monday he made an amazing over the shoulder catch in 7-on-7 drills. He also can get behind the defense with ease as he beat his man and nearly hauled in a long Deshaun Watson pass for a score before a defensive back came over and broke up the play.
Thomas has been disappointing since his return to the field. Monday he had a drop on an easy play. Bill O'Brien mentioned after the second preseason game Thomas needed to get better at his route running. He started off hot but the injury and subsequent struggle to get back on track has derailed him. Warring isn't even practicing right now.
The roster competitions for offense skill position players
These are currently the competitions as I see them for the skill position players.
Potentially two wideout spots if they're keeping six wide receivers. One spot if they're keeping five.
Tyron Johnson - Vyncint Smith - Steven Mitchell
Tyron Johnson will be on someone else's 53-man roster if he gets cut is my assumption. So would Smith. Mitchell is a long way from supplanting either slot wideout but if Keke Coutee's injury lingers he could make the team.
Potentially two running back spots if they are keeping four. One spot if they are keeping three.
Karan Higdon - Taiwan Jones - Demarea Crockett - Buddy Howell
I don't have a good read on this position. They love special teams usefulness and all these guys provide that to some extent in various ways. It will be interesting to see if Howell's impressive finish to the Lions game can get him in the mix more.
One tight end spot with the assumption Kahale Warring heads to the injured reserve.
Darren Fells - Jerell Adams
Adams is good enough to be on someone's 53-man roster just can't see him cracking the Texans roster unless they keep four and IR Warring. With Warring, he's so far behind and has played so little football in his life a "redshirt" year might do him well.
Bonus: Joseph's brain
Johnathan Joseph is always talking on the sidelines. It feels like everyone sits under his learning tree. From Bradley Roby to linebacker Dylan Cole is always encouraging or talking about a rep with the defenders.
Even when Joseph wins a rep against an offensive player he shows great sportsmanship in victory.
What looked like a minor blip after an emotional series win in Los Angeles has turned into something more concerning for the Houston Astros.
Swept at home by a Guardians team that came in riding a 10-game losing streak, the Astros were left looking exposed. Not exhausted, as injuries, underperformance, and questionable decision-making converged to hand Houston one of its most frustrating series losses of the year.
Depth finally runs dry
It would be easy to point to a “Dodger hangover” as the culprit, the emotional peak of an 18-1 win at Chavez Ravine followed by a mental lull. But that’s not the story here.
Houston’s energy was still evident, especially in the first two games of the series, where the offense scored five or more runs each time. Including those, the Astros had reached that mark in eight of their last 10 games heading into Wednesday’s finale.
But scoring isn’t everything, not when a lineup held together by duct tape and desperation is missing Christian Walker and Jake Meyers and getting critical at-bats from Cooper Hummel, Zack Short, and other journeymen.
The lack of depth finally showed. The Astros, for three days, looked more like a Triple-A squad with Jose Altuve and a couple big-league regulars sprinkled in.
Cracks in the pitching core
And the thing that had been keeping this team afloat, elite pitching, finally buckled.
Hunter Brown and Josh Hader, both dominant all season, finally cracked. Brown gave up six runs in six innings, raising his pristine 1.82 ERA to 2.21. Hader wasn’t spared either, coughing up a game-losing grand slam in extra innings that inflated his ERA from 1.80 to 2.38 in one night.
But the struggles weren’t isolated. Bennett Sousa, Kaleb Ort, and Steven Okert each gave up runs at critical moments. The bullpen’s collective fade could not have come at a worse time for a team already walking a tightrope.
Injury handling under fire
Houston’s injury management is also drawing heat, and rightfully so. Jake Meyers, who had been nursing a calf strain, started Wednesday’s finale. He didn’t even make it through one pitch before aggravating the injury and needing to be helped off the field.
No imaging before playing him. No cautionary rest despite the All-Star break looming. Just a rushed return in a banged-up lineup, and it backfired immediately.
Second-guessing has turned to outright criticism of the Astros’ medical staff, as fans and analysts alike wonder whether these mounting injuries are being made worse by how the club is handling them.
Pressure mounts on Dana Brown
All eyes now turn to Astros GM Dana Brown. The Astros are limping into the break with no clear reinforcements on the immediate horizon. Only Chas McCormick is currently rehabbing in Sugar Land. Everyone else? Still sidelined.
Brown will need to act — and soon.
At a minimum, calling up top prospect Brice Matthews makes sense. He’s been mashing in Triple-A (.283/.400/.476, 10 HR, .876 OPS) and could play second base while Jose Altuve shifts to left field more regularly. With Mauricio Dubón stretched thin between shortstop and center, injecting Matthews’ upside into the infield is a logical step.
*Editor's note: The Astros must be listening, Matthews was called up Thursday afternoon!
The Astros are calling up Brice Matthews, their top prospect on @MLBPipeline
via @brianmctaggart pic.twitter.com/K91cGKkcx6
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 10, 2025
There’s also trade chatter, most notably about Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins, but excitement has been tepid. His numbers don’t jump off the page, but compared to who the Astros are fielding now, Mullins would be a clear upgrade and a much-needed big-league presence.
A final test before the break
Before the All-Star reset, Houston gets one last chance to stabilize the ship, and it comes in the form of a rivalry series against the Texas Rangers. The Astros will send their top trio — Lance McCullers Jr., Framber Valdez, and Hunter Brown — to the mound for a three-game set that will test their resolve, their health, and perhaps their postseason aspirations.
The Silver Boot is up for grabs. So is momentum. And maybe, clarity on just how far this version of the Astros can go.
There's so much more to discuss! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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*ChatGPT assisted.
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