Houston Texans: Roster changes made before preseason finale

The Houston Texans and all NFL franchises have until 3 p.m. on Sept. 1 to finalize their 53-man roster for their season opener in Week 1.

The Houston Texans started early in cutting from their roster by releasing wide receiver and special teams ace Chris Thompson. Thompson missed most of the preseason while dealing with a concussion injury.

The odds were already stacked against him with an already deep competition at wide receiver. Thompson still has a future in the league since he proved he was more than capable of helping the Texans in the special teams department. He always had a knack to be around the ball on special teams and make plays. Thompson needs to continue to improve on adding bulk to his small frame so he can meet the rigorous demands of the NFL.

Texans also waived defensive lineman Marcus Hardison, who didn’t last long unemployed and was picked off waivers and added to the Los Angeles Chargers roster. The Texans created the required roster spot to complete the transaction to sign veteran cornerback Kayvon Webster. With the addition of Webster, the Texans added both a player capable of contributing in the Texans’ secondary and at special teams. Webster is coming off a season which was cut short when he suffered an Achilles injury.

With this late addition to the roster, it is possible that the Texans have finalized the cornerback depth chart before the fourth preseason game. Houston normally takes five cornerbacks to the regular season, and those players will probably be Jonathan Joseph, Kevin Johnson, Aaron Colvin, Kayvon Webster and Johnson Bademosi as that is the safe bet as to who the cornerbacks the Texans will roll with in their season opener versus the New England Patriots.

Inside linebacker and special teamer Ben Heeney was also placed on the injury reserve for having season-ending ankle surgery after getting injured in the third preseason game versus the Los Angeles Rams.

The regular season is ever so close, and for the Texans, there is still work to be done, but they’ve already made some needed roster cuts to round out their roster.