Houston Texans: Second round pick Nick Martin out for season
By Randy Gurzi
The Houston Texans lost their second round pick Nick Martin for the season after he had ankle surgery to repair a high-ankle sprain
Houston Texans head coach Bill O’Brien recently said that their second round pick center Nick Martin could end up needing surgery to repair his high ankle sprain. On Thursday Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reported that the rookie did in fact have surgery.
Martin, the Notre Dame alum, will be placed on the injured reserve, ending his 2016 season before it began. It’s tough news considering that it initially seemed Martin would only miss a few weeks with the injury.
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The high football IQ rookie was supposed to help solidify an offensive line that has been dealing with a rash of injuries over the past season-plus. The Texans had to routinely shift their line in 2015 and even found themselves starting undrafted rookies and players off opposing team’s practice squads.
Now they will count on another undrafted kid in 2016 as second-year center Greg Mancz is slated to start with Martin out. While the team calls Mancz a “scrappy” player, he did struggle in both games so far this preseason which should be cause for some concern.
Even more alarming is the fact that Mancz has outplayed free agent pick up Tony Bergstrom. The guard/center came over from the Oakland Raiders and looked like he had a chance to start until the Texans selected Martin. Now he appears to be in line for a backup role even with a starting position opening up again.
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Look for the Texans to keep their eyes on the waiver wires as teams make their cuts with the preseason winding down. They were able to swing a deal for experienced tackle Chris Clark last season around this time, so that also could be an option going forward.