Texans Officially Move Rookie Off Injured Reserve

Smith, the Texans' third-round selection at 99th overall from USC this offseason, has been out for the past four games due to a strained hamstring— marking a tough blow to Houston's secondary depth across the past month.

But following the Texans' Week 7 matchup vs. the Seattle Seahawks, the Texans would finally get to see Smith back in practice for a full week. And after being a full participant in Friday's session, Houston will officially elevate him to play his first NFL game since mid-September.

Texans Elevate Jaylin Smith From Injured Reserve

Smith has suited up for two games across his NFL career thus far, filling in as a depth piece being the tandem of Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter. In that limited sample size, he's had four combined tackles, while holding a Pro Football Focus grade of 74.8 during that span.

Now, he'll find his way back into the mix for this weekend, joining veteran Tremon Smith as depth in the cornerback room, who's been Houston's third cornerback in his absence, as well as likely getting some solid work in special teams as he did prior to being forced to Injured Reserve.

Along with the move to elevate Smith, the Texans have also cut tight end Brenden Bates from their 53-man roster in order to make space for the rookie corner.

Bates is a two-year veteran who was signed onto Houston's roster back in September, and would wind up playing three games. In those three games, Bates had a total of two catches for 22 yards.

While the Texans will be getting reinforcements in their secondary, they'll be pretty depleted in their wide receiver room, as both Nico Collins and Christian Kirk have been ruled out with their respective injuries, leaving C.J. Stroud a couple of his top targets against a tough, but also beaten-up San Francisco defense.