TEXANS CAMP REPORT
11 observations from Texans training camp Day 10 - Saturday under the lights
Aug 8, 2021, 2:02 pm
TEXANS CAMP REPORT
The Houston Texans had their most active practice of training camp on Saturday with a scrimmage atmosphere in front of fans.
1. Texans head coach David Culley was as demonstrative and loud as he has been all camp on Saturday. Culley was exasperated after a pre-snap penalty for the offense. Later, Culley "benched" a player for another player after a false start.
2. Brandin Cooks is regularly unguardable in Texans camp. Cooks had three big plays, one wiped out via penalty, on Saturday. The veteran wideout is a terror for the defensive backs.
3. Quarterback Tyrod Taylor was impressive for a good portion of the practice. Taylor's movement will be an asset when the better defenses show up on the schedule. Taylor made very few mistakes on Saturday.
4. The play of the day saw Taylor roll out to his left, chased by defenders, and heave the ball to the end zone. The 35-yard pass ended up in the hands of Brandin Cooks for a score. This was after a penalty had negated a previous Cooks score.
5. The above-mentioned penalized play was a screen to Cooks. Leading the way on the screen: second-year offensive tackle Charlie Heck. Heck had far more good plays than bad plays on Saturday. He's had a solid camp playing tackle and clearly has changed his body composition in the offseason.
6. Heck did allow one speed rush to get past him. The rush came from defensive lineman Jacob Martin. Martin flashed twice in the scrimmage with two sacks. Martin has had a rough camp to this point, so if he could build on Saturday that would go a long way for him.
7. Vincent Taylor and Ross Blacklock caused havoc along the interior of the defensive line. Taylor destroyed a run play. Blacklock had a couple of hurries and a would-be sack. Towards the end of practice, Blacklock started getting extra attention put on him.
8. Davis Mills and Jeff Driskel struggled to be consistent on offense. Mills started his set of reps with a little momentum, but he finished his first set of reps with a pass to nowhere, leading to a field goal. Driskel threw an interception to safety Lonnie Johnson.
9. Plenty of the rookies showed up during the workout. Nico Collins had a nice catch in traffic. Roy Lopez was constantly double- teamed by offensive linemen. Tight end Brevin Jordan had a nice catch on an out-route. Linebacker Garrett Wallow, who is wearing 32 despite being a linebacker, had a freaky pass breakup saving a touchdown. Wallow skied for the ball and batted down a would-be touchdown pass from Tyrod Taylor to Alex Erickson. Wallow, unfortunately, didn't come down with the interception.
10. Pharaoh Brown and Jordan Akins are the clear leaders at tight end. Each of them had touchdown catches, including a beauty of a strike from Tyrod Taylor to Brown for a touchdown. Akins finds holes in the defense.
11.Deshaun Watson was not at practice yet again.
The Houston Astros announced on Monday that additional imaging has revealed that Jeremy Peña is dealing with a small fracture in one of his ribs.
Peña left Friday's game after being hit by a pitch in the ribs. The club originally believed they had avoided any fractures or breaks, but new information has informed them otherwise.
Update on Jeremy Peña: pic.twitter.com/jfCsCUKWFx
— Houston Astros (@astros) June 30, 2025
Peña is heading to the 10-day injured list retroactive to June 28. This news comes at an unfortunate time, with Jeremy posting the best regular season numbers of his career. He's currently slashing .322, .378, .489 with an .867 OPS.
Peña will miss the Rockies and Dodgers series at a minimum.
Story on Peña headed to the IL with quotes from Dana Brown.
“This isn’t one of those things where you have to be sidelined the whole time. Once the inflammation goes down, he might feel good enough to swing a bat.” https://t.co/ih2G09Jpcf
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) June 30, 2025
Let's hope the team doesn't rush him back too soon and create an even bigger problem. These quotes above from Dana Brown have me concerned. Playing through injuries can create bad habits, and Jeremy has clearly found his swing this season.