The Houston Texans have a very intriguing training camp battle on their hands

Training camp is fast approaching! That means 90 Houston Texans players will be fighting for 53 spots on the active roster. Many will have exciting position battles for fans and media to watch, including a few Texas positions.

We will get into these battles in the coming months and see who could possibly win these battles. However, let’s enter the wide reception room first. I’m not going to mention the player we’ve all been talking about for the past month (Stefon Diggs), but the players on the back half of the roster who are fighting for a spot in this loaded wide receiver room.

The Texans will most likely keep six receivers in 2024, compared to the five they kept for most of 2023. This year, with the return of John Metchie and the addition of talent from the top of their depth chart down, six seems like a very solid number here. Last year, they kept five receivers for several reasons. First, Noah Brown missed time to start the season due to injury, and they simply didn’t have the depth they have now to make up for the injuries. So who’s struggling in training camp?

Brown came into the spotlight in 2023 when he became a major threat to CJ Stroud, totaling 567 yards and two touchdowns on 33 receptions. Brown can line up both inside the slot position and outside as a boundary receiver, making him an intriguing player to watch to see if he can force Robert Woods out his job. Houston added a handful of receivers this offseason, including Ben Skowronek, who, as Tom Pelissero reported, was just acquired from the Los Angeles Rams. Skowronek is a lot like Brown, as he can play both the slot and outside receiver positions.

The Texans seem to be following a pattern here. Be versatile enough to play anywhere you need to, otherwise they don’t have room for you. That could pose a danger to Robert Woods, who missed time due to injuries last season and is currently 32 years old.

Houston may already have Woods’ replacement after season 24. Skowronek is six years younger, at 26, and Los Angeles also lined him up at shooting guard at times last season. There’s a lot here that makes you believe Woods won’t be in Houston this season, and the whole “veteran presence” saying doesn’t apply here. They have their veteran in Diggs and could look to the future instead of an aging receiver who hasn’t gotten on the field with a thinner receiving corps. If Houston doesn’t add more receivers to this team, Woods might still be a Texan and we won’t talk about it. But they added two who can start right now, and one of them happens to be a slot receiver.

There’s a good chance the acquisition of Ben Skowronek could affect two roster spots. Robert Woods and guard Andrew Beck, who has been with the team since 2023. If the Texans can maintain a 53-man roster spot by not keeping a guard on their team, they can use that extra roster spot on another position which they occupy deeply. has. They have a lot more talent than fans are used to, which means if they can keep a player they like, it will likely cost someone like Andrew Beck a spot.

Prediction: Noah Brown

The Texans will appreciate Brown’s youth and versatility in this offense compared to Robert Woods. Houston could get a return for Woods if they find a team that needs receivers on cut day, but there’s a good chance he won’t return in 2024.