Reactions to Houston Texans Training Camp Day 4 and Day 5

How have the Houston a Texans looked as full-padded practice becomes a reality?

Houston Texans Training Camp has concluded days four and five, with today being the first day we got to witness the new 2024 roster in a full-padded practice. Both days held highlights for rookies like cornerback Kamari Lassiter and defensive back Caleb Bullock, for new faces like running back Cam Akers, and for veterans like wide receiver Stefon Diggs.

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• Tuesday was the first day of padded practice, as well as a rest day for some veterans

There were several more missing faces on Tuesday than before, leading to suspicion that today might be a rest day for the veterans. Wide receivers Nico Collins, John Metchie III, and running back Joe Mixon were all not in pads for practice today.

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• Houston’s red-zone offense sought revenge after Monday’s defensive dominance

Today was all about red-zone routes and touchdowns. We got some circus catches from Stefan Diggs, celebrations, handshakes, and even an impressive Davis Mills to Cade Stover touchdown in the back of the end zone:

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• WR Stefon Diggs has been the talk of the town

Stefon Diggs has come to Houston Texans training camp, and he has conquered. He’s been interviewed, spoken on the podium repeatedly, showed off his touchdown celebrations, made each day of camp a highlight reel, and has been mentoring all of the younger receivers on the Texans’ roster along the way.

Stefon Diggs alone is a massive difference maker for the entire offense, and this all-in approach to training camp is very encouraging to see. Getting Stefon Diggs the player is fantastic, but getting to see Stefon Diggs the coach during training camp has been a welcome sight. He’s clearly a man on a mission, and we can only hope Houston is the ticket to the Super Bowl.

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• RB Dameon Pierce looks resurgent entering year three

It looks like Dameon Pierce might be back! The beat writers covering the Texans’ training camp have been atwitter about running back Dameon Pierce’s performance in the first few days of practice. Joe Mixon has been out the first few days of practice, which is apparently no big deal, and Pierce has excelled in his stead on first team reps.

If Dameon Pierce can keep this upward trajectory throughout training camp and into the regular season, then Houston’s offense may just be truly complete. Two starting-caliber running backs can be the knockout blows to any team fast enough to keep up with the C.J. Stroud aerial attack, and it can be even better considering Houston’s most recent addition.

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• RB Cam Akers makes his first appearance at Houston Texans training camp

It’s been a few years and two separate Achilles tears since running back Cam Akers appeared like one of the next generations’ best running backs, which means he is due for a rebound. Houston signed Cam Akers as a low risk/high reward prospect that could just as likely to rise up the depth chart as he is to get cut before the end preseason, it all depends on how he plays during camp. In his rookie season with the Los Angeles Rams, Akers showed the strength and speed to be a starting back in the NFL, but an Achilles tear in summer 2021 completely derailed his Rams career, and another tear to the Achilles on his other leg shortened his stay with his second team, the Minnesota Vikings. Now in Houston, Akers is hoping to return to that exceptional form he displayed at the end of the 2020 season.

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• WR John Metchie III is standing out in a crowded receiving room

With all of the hullabaloo about wide receivers Tank Dell, Nico Collins, and recently acquired Stefon Diggs absorbing the vast majority of attention during the offseason, I don’t think many saw 2022 second round pick John Metchie III becoming the standout receiver early on in training camp. But, here we are!

This five-headed monster at receiver might turn into the six-headed monster soon enough! Can you believe the embarrassment of riches Houston has right now? Houston had arguably the worst roster in football just two years ago, and now they’ve become one of the best in their conference!

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• Rookie CB Kamari Lassiter is making plays early on

Besides the presence of star receiver Stefon Diggs at Houston Texans Training Camp, I don’t think there’s been a training camp event more covered than rookie cornerback Kamari Lassiter’s performance. Lassiter has been the starting cornerback opposite Derek Stingley Jr. since day one of the training camp, and has successfully covered Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell. Those are three radically different frames to cover if you’re a cornerback still getting used to the professional league, but Lassiter took it on and shined through it all. This is a fantastic development for Houston’s defense, considering how weak their cornerback room became after Steven Nelson announced his retirement.

There was plenty of trepidation about Lassiter shortly after general manager Nick Caserio took him with the 42nd overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. Lassiter had been an SEC Defensive Player of the Year and dominant coverage cornerback for the Georgia Bulldogs, but his very underwhelming 40-yard dash time of 4.6 seconds harmed his draft stock, sending him spiraling down lists across the internet. Many thought the Texans were reaching when they took Lassiter that high in the draft, but as of right now, that selection is looking like a steal. If this keeps going

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• Rookie OT Blake Fisher looks great early filling in for inactive LT Laremy Tunsil

Maybe one of the most welcome (if unsurprising) revelations uncovered in the first few days of Houston Texans Training Camp has been the emergence of rookie tackle Blake Fisher. Blake Fisher was one of the most athletically gifted tackles in a loaded 2024 draft class, and I’ve written before about my confidence in him.

That confidence was backed up quickly when Fisher was asked to take first-team left tackles reps while entrenched starter Laremy Tusnil recovers from offseason arthroscopic knee surgery. At the very demanding spot of left tackle, Fisher has performed well early on, holding up well against the likes of Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. Fisher is still a raw prospect, but the foundation for a future Texans stalwart is there for all to see.

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• Jalen Pitre has moved into the nickel CB spot, and rookie DB Calen Bullock has taken his spot at FS

Here’s another surprising development of training camp so far. Rookie defensive back Calen Bullock reminds you so much of the prototypical San Francisco 49ers safety that you almost wonder if DeMeco Ryans was seeing John Lynch when he pulled up Bullock’s tape at USC. Bullock is rangy, instinctual, and ready to lay down the lumber at any opportunity. In training camp, his instincts have led to an impressively heavy workload for being a rookie third round pick, taking the spot of FS on the first team. Like CB Kamari Lassiter’s performance, these encouraging early signs are game-changing for the Texans, as they both plug a hole on their team that had exceedingly few to begin with. If Lassiter and Bullock turn out to be a the real deal, this is a Super Bowl team. I mean, when is the next time we’re going to get a defense this complete and a quarterback this fantastic. If Bullock and Lassiter successfully successfully fill in the holes left by Steven Nelson and 2019-era Tyrann Mathieu, then the window is officially wide open for Houston.

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It’s been a very busy training camp for an AFC contender. A good kind of busy, too, unlike the drama that would spread during the 2019 and 2020 camps. These are kind of training camps headlines you want to hear from a good football team: one that sounds as if it’s getting better and better with each passing day. Instead of the rookies being a liability, they have been an asset. The coaches have been blown away by the improvements John Metchie and Dameon Pierce have made, and Stefon Diggs is helping everyone. This is just the perfect kind of news to get you hyped up for the regular season! I can’t believe I’m saying this, but can it be September already?

But what do you think of all of these positive training camp headlines? Is Kamari Lassiter really another star cornerback in the waiting, or is Houston still weak in the backfield? Will Dameon Pierce get back to his 2022 form, or was that just a flash in the pan? Let us know in the comments below!