Texans Promising Rookie Impresses in Preseason Debut Against Vikings

The first preseason contest of the year always brings the top rookies on the roster. Not all of the top picks for the Houston Texans were involved in the season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, but those who were impressed.

Of course, for the Texans, all eyes are on the offensive line to see who will step up and take a spot among the starting five. Houston did not trot out some of the more notable names on the line, such as Tytus Howard. 

The front five for Houston to start the preseason was, from left to right, Aireontae Ersery, Juices Scruggs, Jake Andrews, Ed Ingram, and Blake Fisher. Being the highest drafted rookie involved in the contest, Ersery was bound to be the center of attention.

Rookie Steps Up in Texans’ Preseason Opener

Luckily, Ersery put out a strong first impression. The rookie out of Minnesota played just a single series back against the Vikings, but that’s all he needed as he helped the Texans' offense drive the field to score the game’s first touchdown.

Ersery didn’t do anything too flashy, but his performance at left tackle was more than satisfactory. Houston ran behind Ersery for 14 of their 26 yards on the initial drive and looked more than comfortable in pass protection.

His block on the play-action rollout to the left that resulted in a Davis Mills-to-Braxton Barrios score, again, while nothing flashy, was a fine example of the 23-year-old executing his assignments.

The Vikings, of course, did not play all of their defensive starters either. Still, their 2024 first-round pick Dallas Turner was lined up across from Ersery on most plays, and Ersery came out as the victor in most of those matchups and against anyone else in purple who fell into his grasp Saturday afternoon.

READ MORE: GM Nick Caserio Shares Key for Texans' Offensive Line

It’s just as good a sign as any that the Texans’ coaching staff gave Ersery a shot at left tackle to open the preseason and fell comfortably enough with his performance to bring him out of the game after just a single drive. The difference without him was notable as the next left tackle in the lineup, Zach Thomas, gave up a sack two plays into the next drive .

There’s no guarantee that Ersery will land the starting left tackle job, let alone after one preseason performance. Nonetheless, his chances of landing a role on the starting five certainly took a positive hit after Saturday.