Two starters for the Houston Texans’ defense missed practice back-to-back days, but for one player, it’s not much of a concern.
For the other? Time could be pressing if he plans on securing a starting job for the upcoming season amid a contract year.
Nickel defender Jalen Pitre and linebacker Christian Harris missed Saturday’s practice, though both were in attendance among the fans and greeted folks after drills. For Pitre, Saturday marked the second consecutive practice missed with an undisclosed injury.
For Harris, he’s yet to see action in any practice because of a lower-body injury that hindered his playing time last year. Despite being cleared from starting the season on the PUP list, Harris hasn’t taken snaps during teams drills.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said that Pitre, like all players, would be on their “own timeline” regarding a return. For Pitre, he’s not expected to miss much time and could be back at practice by Monday morning.
Pitre, who inked a three-year, $42 million extension this offseason, was having a career year after moving to the nickel from safety in 2024 before a chest injury cut his season short. In the early stages of training camp, he’s impressed in coverage, picking off C.J. Stroud on the second day of practice for a return for a touchdown.
“He’s been a guy who’s been very consistent for us, no matter where we’ve put him or what we’ve asked him to do. He’s just my type of player,” Ryans said. “He’s all over the field, always up for the challenge. Whatever the down is, he’s going to be around the football and making plays and it was evident today.”
Harris, who enters the final year of his rookie deal, hopes to return to his 2023 form. When Ryans arrived from San Francisco, no one benefitted more than Harris, who notched 101 tackles, two sacks, three forced fumbles and a pick-six in the wild-card round victory over the Cleveland Browns.
With both Henry To’oTo’o and E.J. Speed seeing extended time in the starting lineup, every practice missed for Harris could inch closer to him finding a new home in 2026.
The Texans return to practice on Monday.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Texans DB Jalen Pitre, LB Christian Harris miss consecutive training camp practices
Reporting by Cole Thompson, Texans Wire / Texans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
