Houston Texans Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Texans WR Robert Woods (hip) is inactive for tonight’s game vs. the Colts. He joins WR Noah Brown (back) on the inactive list. That leaves WRs Xavier Hutchinson and John Metchie behind No. 1 WR Nico Collins. TE Dalton Schultz could play an expanded role in the passing game tonight.

Texans WR Noah Brown (back) is out for Saturday night's game vs. the Colts. WR Robert Woods (hip) is listed as questionable but didn't practice all week. WRs Xavier Hutchinson and John Metchie might be forced into significant roles in this must-win game.

Texans Edge Will Anderson Jr. (ankle) and Edge Jonathan Greenard (ankle) missed practice Tuesday and Wednesday, ahead of Saturday's game against the Colts. Anderson missed the first two practices last week but then played and produced in the win over the Titans. We'd bet he'll be ready for Week 18. Greenard missed last week. We'll see what the week's final injury report (Thursday afternoon) says for each player.

Texans WRs Noah Brown (back) and Robert Woods (hip) did not practice on Wednesday. Both guys were knocked out of last week's win and are in danger of missing Saturday night's game against the Colts. Their absences would leave Xavier Hutchinson and John Metchie as Houston' No. 2 and 3 WRs behind Nico Collins. We'll see how Brown and Woods are listed on the final injury report tomorrow.

Bills WR Stefon Diggs remained a non-factor in Sunday’s close win over New England. Diggs managed only 26 yards, meaning he’s now been held under 50 in four straight. Note: Josh Allen really struggled through the air with only 169 yards on 15-of-30 passing. After the game, HC Sean McDermott was asked if Diggs’ dip in production was concerning. “It is. I mean, he’s our No. 1 receiver,” McDermott said. “Whether teams are trying to take him away or they’re getting the ball spread around and things we can do better offensively. I know this, anytime a quarterback is going through his progression, that’s the right way to go through it, right? And the ball finds the open player, so he’s going to be fine.” OK. Diggs will close out the regular season at Miami, but the real question is where to slot him in 2024 rankings following a second-half slump. We’ll have 2024 redraft rankings/projections available before the Super Bowl.

Bengals RB Joe Mixon ran the ball 21 times for 65 yards in Sunday's loss to the Chiefs. He added 4 receptions for 22 yards and a TD. Mixon has been losing work to Chase Brown over the previous four weeks, but out-touched Brown 25-5 in this game. The Bengals have a potential out to cut Mixon after this season. If that happens, the soon-to-be 28-year-old (in July) would be no guarantee to find a new starting gig. Mixon's best bet for 2024 fantasy value would likely be to stick in Cincinnati.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud returned from a two-game concussion with a decent outing in Sunday's win over the Titans. He threw for 213 yards on 24-of-32 passing, with 1 TD, 0 INTs, and 1 sack taken. Stroud's 75% completion rate marked a season high, but his 6.7 yards per pass attempt marked one of his lowest averages all season. The numbers indicate Stroud didn't show any rust in the aftermath of the concussion. The shorter range of his passing for a second straight game, though -- 4.0 YPA vs. the Jets in the game he left early -- is worth noting. That was Houston's first full game without WR Tank Dell, who leads the team in average target depth for the season -- by more than 2 yards over No. 2 Noah Brown (according to Pro Football Reference). The recent trend for Stroud isn't enough to make him worrisome as a fantasy option if your league plays into Week 18. Stroud gets a fine matchup with Indy. But he probably doesn't present as much upside as he did before Dell went down.

Texans WR Robert Woods injured his hip in the second half of Sunday's game vs. the Titans. He was deemed questionable to return but never did. Houston lost WR Noah Brown to a hip injury earlier in this game. We'll keep an eye on both WRs this coming week.

Texans WR Noah Brown injured a hip in the first half of Sunday's game vs. the Titans and is officially questionable to return. We'll update his status when we know more.

Update: Brown has been ruled out.

Texans Edge Will Anderson Jr. is active for today's game against the Titans. He missed the past two games with a high-ankle sprain and still managed just one limited practice (Friday) this week. So don't expect him to be back to full strength. The high-upside matchup with Tennessee makes him interesting in deep/dynasty situations, but be careful about trusting him too much. DT Maliek Collins (hip) is inactive. DT Sheldon Rankins (ankle) is active.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud (concussion) practiced all week, including full workouts on Thursday and Friday, and is off the final injury report. He’ll be back under center for this weekend’s game vs. the Titans – a big boost for Houston’s offense. See where all the Texans sit in the Week 17 Rankings.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud has cleared concussion protocol and will play vs. the Titans on Sunday, barring a setback between now and then, insider Aaron Wilson reports. With Stroud out the past two weeks, Houston has totaled just 41 points and 370 passing yards. The rookie's return is a big boost for the entire offense, particularly WR Nico Collins, WR Noah Brown, and TE Dalton Schultz. See where all the Texans sit in the Week 17 Rankings.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud (concussion) put in a limited practice on Wednesday. HC Demeco Ryans said that Stroud is in stage four of the five-stage protocol. “It was encouraging to see him," Ryans said. "I think it just lifts everybody’s spirits to see him back doing well and still progressing in the right direction. So, happy about that.” Stroud is seemingly trending toward being cleared in time for Sunday's game vs. the Titans, but we'll keep you updated on his progress

The Texans have claimed S Kareem Jackson off waivers from the Broncos. Denver dumped the twice-suspended veteran, opting to continue with P.J. Locke next to S Justin Simmons. Jackson could see immediate time for a Houston defense that lost Jimmie Ward to a quad injury against the Browns. It's not yet clear how long Ward will be out. We'll watch for specifics on Jackson's Week 17 role.

Texans WR Nico Collins (calf) is active for today’s game vs. the Browns. HC Demeco Ryans told insider Kimberley Martin this morning that Collins will have no limitations in this one. Still, QB C.J. Stroud’s absence and Cleveland’s No. 3 WR defense leaves Collins in WR3 territory in the Week 16 Rankings.

ESPN's Adam Schefter hears that there's "optimism" that Texans QB C.J. Stroud (concussion) will be back for Week 17. Stroud remained sidelined in practice all last week but "has begun to make some progress" through the protocol, according to Schefter. We'll track the rookie's status this coming week. QB Case Keenum starts vs. the Browns today.

Bills WR Stefon Diggs managed just 5 catches for 29 yards in Saturday's win over the Chargers. He made some nice contested catches in this one, but the real story is a multi-week downtrend in production. In fact, Diggs hasn’t cracked 90 yards since Week 6. And he’s gone three straight games without a score. Josh Allen fired off only 21 passes, while the Bills ran a subpar 52 plays on the night. Diggs also watched as Gabe Davis (4-130-1) popped off for a couple of explosive plays. Note: Per Pro Football Focus, Diggs played his second-lowest snap share of the season. (His lowest mark came in Week 15.) We’ll see if there’s any news out of Orchard Park on Diggs this coming week. But it’ll be tough to keep him out of lineups for an upcoming matchup with New England.

Bengals RB Joe Mixon struggled in Week 16 vs. the Steelers, logging just 41 rushing yards on 11 carries in the contest. Saturday’s outcome marks the second consecutive game in which the veteran has failed to reach 50 rushing yards and spells some concern about his chances at rebounding in the fantasy championship. He’ll be set to square off against a Chiefs defense that ranks as the ninth-toughest RB matchup per our adjusted fantasy points allowed and should be best considered as an RB2 candidate.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Texans WR Nico Collins (calf) is expected to play Sunday against the Browns. That matches what Collins said earlier in the week. He's still not as attractive an option as usual because of C.J. Stroud's absence and a challenging matchup with the Browns. But Collins should at least be available.

Houston has ruled out LB Blake Cashman (hamstring) for the second straight game. LB Denzel Perryman (Achilles') is questionable. He managed limited practices all week, though, and Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 in Houston reports that Perryman's "trending toward being active." Cashman's absence and Perryman's question mark have moved LB Christian Harris up our Week 16 LB rankings. Harris has produced solid numbers lately, including 7 solo tackles in three of his past four games -- with two lines of 10+ total tackles in that span. Cleveland presents a positive scoring matchup this week. The Browns have yielded the third-most fantasy points per game to LBs for the season and remain top-8 in that category even over QB Joe Flacco's three weeks as starter.