Texans’ Tank Dell Says He Hasn’t Scratched the Surface

Tank Dell Confident in Returning to 100%

As far as general manager Nick Caserio is concerned, he's bound to be keeping a particularly close eye on how close Dell is getting to making a full return to action.

Advanced projections are good on that particular front regarding Dell, so Caserio is holding the leash a tad reluctantly, you feel.

"Once you get on the field you probably have a better visual representation of what that looks like," Caserio said of Dell's status. "If you clear that hurdle, then training camp is more of like, ‘Okay, what does this actually look like?"

"Knowing Tank, he’s probably cautiously optimistic that he’s going to be able to go out there and be Tank Dell. I think everybody is hoping that’s the case, but you never know. Injuries are — none of us control injuries and what happens. But I think everybody is rooting for Tank. He’s worked very hard and had a great attitude. I’m excited to see him out there moving around. Nobody is more excited than he is, so it will be good once we start getting on the field and getting on the grass to see what that looks like.”

Especially when you factor in how improving the offensive line will likely take precedence in the upcoming NFL Draft; at the very least, simply getting Dell back will lessen the need to spend a premium pick on another receiver.

Furthermore, the ongoing mission to strip down and rebuild the backfiring engine under the hood of their own quarterback in Stroud, and it will now get the golden opportunity to strap a turbo booster onto the mainframe.

Stroud's on-field chemistry with Dell might have suffered through frequent fractures due to injury, but the overall vibes the duo have together have only grown through adversity.

“Tank is a brother of mine, somebody who’s like blood to me,” Stroud said. “To see what he’s gone through the last two years has been heartbreaking and he’s been through a lot. But I know he’s grown a lot as a person and as a young man, especially as a man of God. So, I’m proud of him. The smile he continues to have on his face is contagious."

Previous debilitating physical setbacks have unfortunately had severe doses of tough luck attached for Dell, but head coach DeMeco Ryans will have to pay pretty close attention to how fast he's attempting to get Dell back up to NFL speed.

One of Dell's greatest intangibles is his ability to drag people along with him due to his infectious personality, and it will be a timely pick-me-up Stroud will be thankful to tap back into moving forward.