Tytus Howard and Matt Kalil remain out for the Texans but get success from their fill-ins
4 observations from Texans practice Aug. 20
Aug 20, 2019, 11:20 pm
@EdClarke03/Eddie Clarke
If you missed the observations from Monday you can find them here
Matt Kalil is the starting left tackle and might be hurt but might not be
Bill O’Brien’s entire exchange on if Matt Kalil is hurt. He is also asked if Kalil will start week one. #Texans pic.twitter.com/kinSbS2dgx
— patrick (@PatDStat) August 20, 2019
Bill O'Brien hates questions about injuries but this one really set him off. His defensiveness about Matt Kalil is interesting. Roderick Johnson has played well recently and arguably better than Kalil the last time Kalil saw the field. If Johnson is better he should play and someone else can backup Johnson and Kalil can be gone. If Kalil is truly better then he should start at left tackle but he hasn't looked solid in weeks.
O'Brien getting defensive leads credence to the thought Kalil is dealing with an injury. If he is injured, Johnson might and maybe even should pass Kalil on depth chart.
Howard's left hand injury
Tytus Howard has a cast on his left hand. It covers his index finger and middle finger on his left hand. It seems he has a broken finger. He likely won't play and might not practice until the week of the Saints game. Depending on how it heals, and how painful it is, he shouldn't miss regular season time.
1-on-1 winners
Roderick Johnson won a solo rep against Whitney Mercilus.
D.J. Reader worked center Nick Martin.
Max Scharping stuffed his defender.
Seantrell Henderson did an admirable job against J.J. Watt but I would say Watt won the rep.
The offense and defense split the 2v2 reps.
Offensive line projection
Starters in bold. Positions I believe they are comfortable playing and have at least seen them have some success at during camp. I projected eight players. They kept eight players last year in a more dire offensive line situation. I don't see why that can't be the case again.
Matt Kalil (LT)
Tytus Howard (LG)
Nick Martin (C)
Zach Fulton (RG,C,LG)
Seantrell Henderson (RT)
Max Scharping (RG)
Roderick Johnson (LT,RT)
Greg Mancz (C)
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Isaac Paredes has been a steady force in the middle of the Astros’ order, but a tweaked hamstring suffered during Thursday’s win over the White Sox may force Houston to recalibrate, again.
If Paredes misses time, the most logical shuffle would see Jose Altuve sliding back to second base, with Mauricio Dubón stepping in at third. It’s a reasonable patch. But internally, there’s also some intrigue around whether Cam Smith—currently thriving in right field—could slide back to his original position on the infield. The idea isn’t without merit; Smith is the club’s best offensive option at third in Paredes’ absence. But defensively, it’s hard to justify moving him right now. Smith made several standout plays in the Chicago series, reinforcing just how important his glove has become to the Astros’ outfield defense. One thing is for sure, the Astros can't afford to play both Dubon and Brendon Rodgers in the infield regularly. The offense would take a huge hit.
Timing, however, might be on Houston’s side. The next stretch of games features the Twins, Athletics, and Angels—three teams the Astros can beat even while navigating lineup instability. It helps that Yainer Diaz and Christian Walker are showing signs of life at the plate. Diaz, in particular, has been red-hot, posting an OPS north of 1.200 over the past week. Walker is batting over .300 during that same span, giving the Astros enough firepower to survive short-term turbulence.
Elsewhere, the outfield presents its own set of choices. Jacob Melton has shown enough in the field to warrant a serious look as Chas McCormick’s replacement when he returns from injury. He’s still searching for consistency at the plate, batting under .200 in his first 10 big league games. But his arm and left-handed bat give manager Joe Espada a little more lineup flexibility—especially with Yordan Alvarez still out and the offense skewing right-handed.
For now, the Astros have room to adjust. But if Paredes ends up missing significant time, they’ll need more than just a few temporary solutions to keep their momentum going.
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