The Texans have a few camp competitions to sort out, but the one that stands out most right now is the linebacker spot they don’t have to answer today.
Houston’s right tackle situation may be easier to project than its starting center battle, but the real uncertainty sits deeper on the depth chart. The Texans still have a lot to figure out at linebacker, and the LB3 role has become the one to watch after EJ Speed’s season-ending quad injury.
On paper, Speed’s job last year was as Henry To’oTo’o’s top backup. In practice, he was much more than that.
He started nine of the games he played, appeared in 16 contests overall, and logged more than 40% of Houston’s defensive snaps. He also finished with over 60 combined tackles and three TFLs.
That kind of production matters. A defense needs someone who can step in, hold up in coverage, help against the run, and bring enough size and athleticism to stay on the field. And if To’oTo’o misses time, the value of that next man up only grows.
The Texans do have options. There are multiple linebackers already on the roster who could make a case for that LB3 role, and each one brings a different profile to the table. That gives Houston some flexibility, but it also makes the battle unpredictable as camp gets going.
With the top of the linebacker group looking strong, there’s also a real chance that one of the four depth-level candidates ends up squeezed out when cutdown day arrives at the end of August. So this isn’t just about earning snaps. It could decide who sticks around at all.
Training camp will sort out a lot for Houston before Week 1, but this linebacker competition is one of the biggest things to keep an eye on as the summer unfolds.
In Other News…
Joe Mixon Update Leaves Texans Facing A Painful New Reality
Joe Mixons absence has already hung over the Texans backfield for months, and the latest update only deepens the uncertainty around what comes next. The veteran running back missed the entire 2025 season because of a foot injury that Houston general manager Nick Caserio described as a freak medical condition, and the team has had to navigate the fallout without a clear timetable or even a clean explanation of when, or if, he might return.
Mixon did undergo surgery, and while it improved his quality of life, it did not get him to the point where he was cleared to play. For Houston, that leaves a painful reality to process: a proven veteran whose status remains unresolved, a roster spot that has effectively been in limbo, and a backfield picture that may have to move forward without the kind of certainty teams usually count on from a player of his caliber.
Texans Make A Surprising Call On Their Biggest Pass Rush Concern
The Texans edge-rusher picture has been one of the more interesting camp storylines after a busy offseason left Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter locked in as the top two options, but the third spot still open. For now, Houston is leaning into what it already has, giving Dylan Horton and Dominique Robinson the chance to sort out that role while the staff evaluates the rest of the roster in training camp.
That makes the Jadeveon Clowney conversation a little more complicated than the nostalgia around a former No. 1 pick might suggest. Clowney has made his interest in a return known, and he would obviously bring familiarity and experience to a group that could use more depth, but the Texans are not treating that as an immediate fix. Instead, they appear content to let the current competition play out before deciding whether the outside market deserves a closer look. 
Nico Collins Is Crashing The Texans All-Time Receiver Debate
Nico Collins has done more than emerge as a reliable target for Houston. Heading into the 2026 season, he sits third on the Texans all-time receiving yards list with 4,347, a place that puts him squarely in the franchise conversation even before he has finished writing his own story. What makes the case even more interesting is how efficiently he has piled up those yards, with a 15.0 yards-per-catch average that stands above DeAndre Hopkins mark from his Texans years.
The advanced metrics have only strengthened the argument that Collins belongs in a different tier than a typical volume receiver. Since 2023, he has drawn a high PFF grade and earned a spot at No. 58 on the NFL Networks Top 100 players list, signs that his production is being recognized well beyond Houston. The bigger question now is how far he can climb in the franchise record book if this level of play keeps going