The Houston Hook: Texans, Kahale Warring part ways; plus AFC South news

The Houston Hook is a daily look at not only the Houston Texans, but at their AFC South Rivals. The big story for today is Kahale Warring is no longer a member of the franchise that drafted him. 

When the Houston Texans selected Kahale Warring with the 86th overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft, the Toro Times gave the selection a quick reaction grade of a B- because it was exciting at the time the franchise selected the San Diego State product.

At the time, the Houston Texans were trying find the next Owen Daniels, the very good former tight end of the Texans who had success with the franchise from 2006-13, finishing his Texans career with 385 receptions for 4,617 yards and 29 touchdowns. Daniels was an excellent tight end with the Texans, and it is safe to say they are still trying to fill that void ever since at the position.

That brings us to Warring, and when he was drafted it was exciting because it felt the Texans finally had filled that void left by Daniels’ departure. Even though there was excitement, there was also cause for concern written as the article I wrote back then did state they needed to hope they made the right choice:

"“The lone issue with the pick is did the Texans need to use a third-round pick on a tight end for a second straight year? Houston needs to really hope they have finally gotten the tight end position figured out, because if they haven’t, that would be two straight years with a high pick they worked on the position.”"

Then injuries happened and things never got rolling. Warring eventually missed the entire ’19 season with a hamstring injury, and in ’20 he missed nine games due to an undisclosed injury. In the seven games he was active, Warring totaled three receptions on seven targets for 35 yards and zero touchdowns.

Before Warring was drafted in the third round in ’19, Jordan Akins was drafted at tight end in ’18 and is still with the Texans. In ’20 he played in 13 games, making nine starts. Akins totaled 37 receptions for 403 yards and one touchdown last season, but is he the answer at the position for the foreseeable future?

It is more of “what if” with Warring in his tenure with the Texans as it shows nothing is guaranteed, and that if teams want to build viable franchises, the middle rounds of the draft are of great importance.

Houston Texans news: AFC South happenings; Jaguars struggle on MNF

Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence has no touchdowns vs. Saints 

At BlackandTeal.com , they wrote that No. 1 overall draft pick and rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence failed to score a touchdown in the second week of the preseason vs. the New Orleans Saints.

As far as Lawrence, we all know rookie quarterbacks will struggle, so not having a TD pass in the preseason is something that happens. Lawrence was 14-of-23 for 113 yards passing with no touchdown and no interceptions.

Jacksonville is the Week 1 opponent for the Texans, and they will face Lawrence twice a year for the foreseeable future, so Houston shouldn’t take him lightly, even if it will be his regular-season NFL debut.

Colts: Carson Wentz returning for Week 1?

Over at HorseshoeHeroes.com, they are talking about their starting quarterback Carson Wentz and his possible return for Week 1. Wentz suffered a break in his foot this preseason and has been rehabbing since early on in training camp.

When it comes to Wentz, who knows if he’ll be able to return to start their Week 1 game against the Seattle Seahawks, but his progression is worth watching because the Texans do face Indy twice a season.

Titans: A.J. Brown “expected to be ready” for Week 1

Another big-time player in the AFC South who is battling injury this preseason is Tennessee Titans receiver A.J. Brown. An article at TitanSized.com talks about the subject of Brown’s health and his availability for the season-opener against the Arizona Cardinals.

Like with Wentz, keep an eye out on Brown’s knee injury, because if one of the very best wide receivers isn’t fully healthy for Week 1, that will put more pressure on Julio Jones. If Brown does play in this game, he could and probably will make things tougher for the defense of the Cardinals.