Texans Debut New Starting Group on First Day of Training Camp

Training camp takeaways need to be assessed with a grain of salt. The first day of practice, especially, doesn't hold much bearing on how players or a team is going to perform in the upcoming season. That doesn't mean that there's nothing worth taking away, though.

The Houston Texans are trying to find a way to improve on their 2024 campaign that resulted in a 10-7 record and a Divisional Round appearance in the playoffs. That would be a highly encouraging season if it weren't for the fact that they finished the 2023 year the exact same way.

Now, the Texans are in danger of stagnating their development as a young team that appeared to be on the verge of true Super Bowl contention. Along with hoping that C.J. Stroud can overcome a slight sophomore slump this year, Houston has made it a priority to improve their offensive line. That group saw a lot of changeover this offseason, but not many are optimistic about the incoming group, with several analysts predicting that it'll be the worst line in the NFL in 2025.

One source of hope is second-round pick out of Minnesota, tackle Aireontae Ersery. There was hope that he could outplay free agent signee Cam Robinson and become the Texans' new starting left tackle at some point this year. Instead, it appears that Houston might be looking to deploy both in their starting unit.

On the first day of training camp, the Texans rolled out a different line than the one they ended minicamp with. Robinson remained at left tackle. Laken Tomlinson and Tytus Howard kept their spots on the depth chart at left and right guard, too. However, Jarrett Patterson reclaimed his starting slot at center over offseason acquisition Jake Andrews.

The highlight, though, was Ersery getting to play right tackle on the first unit instead of 2024 second-round pick, Blake Fisher. It's encouraging to see that Ersery has shown enough to earn reps with the starting group, and Fisher might be much better off as a backup tackle than as the RT1 at this point. The Texans will be hoping that this new lineup can help new offensive coordinator Nick Caley rejuvenate Houston's attack this season.