The Texans are going to be shorthanded at wide receiver against the Colts on Thursday night.
Houston ruled out Cecil Shorts (shoulder) and Nate Washington (hamstring) on Wednesday afternoon, which means they’ll head into the game with an inexperienced group of wideouts to go with DeAndre Hopkins. Rookies Keith Mumphrey, Chandler Worthy and Jaelen Strong make up the rest of the receiving corps and they’ve combined for nine catches through four weeks.
Strong hasn’t had any of those catches because he hasn’t played in a regular season game yet. The third-round pick should change that on Thursday night and Strong said this week, via the Houston Chronicle, that he’s “ready to go out there and do what I’m coached to do.”
The Texans also ruled out safety Quintin Demps, linebacker Akeem Dent and running back Jonathan Grimes with hamstring injuries. Safety Lonnie Ballentine (knee), linebacker Whitney Mercilus (thigh) and running back Chris Polk (knee) are all questionable. If Polk can’t play, Arian Foster and Alfred Blue are the only two other backs currently on the 53-man roster.