A chorus of cheers just broke out across the vast expanse known as "Texans Twitter", as a fan-favorite in dynamic Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dall is confirmed to be returning to the field this upcoming Sunday against the New York Giants. The news comes directly from head coach DeMeco Ryans during his Monday press conference with the media following the team's epic 34-31 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars from London on Sunday.
The news also confirms the speculation of many around the fan base who believed that Houston would hold off on fully activating Dell until the final week of his 21-day practice window. WIth this week starting the third since his announced practice activation, it's a development that's right on time.
With the fourth-year pass catcher now back in the fold, Houston will potentially have its most explosive receiving group of the Ryans-Stroud era.
The Houston Texans project to have its most explosive wide receiver group of the Ryans-Stroud era after the return of Tank Dell
Now that Dell will be added to the on-field game plan, Houston will have a group that consists of some variation of:
- Nico Collins
- Marvin Harrison Jr.
- Jaylin Noel
- Kayshon Boutte
- Xavier Hutchinson
- Tank Dell
If I had to guess, the odd man out in this equation would most likely be Hutchinson, as names like Harrison, Boutte and Noel offer specific schematic advantages that the former Iowa State receiver just doesn't offer the team at this time. However, I could definitely see Hutchinson being used alongside Noel as the full time return duo on special teams as a worst case scenario for him.
Regardless, the Texans now have a great problem on their hands, as they now have to find a way to juggle the talents of yet another high-potential reciving weapon at a time where they already rank as the fourth-best passing unit in the NFL in yards per game at 270.2, and second-best in net yards passing at 1,621.
It's been a long time coming for the former Houston Cougar, and a day that some who follow the team thought may never come. He's worked extremely hard to fight his way back to being available for his teammates, and I have no doubt in my mind that the fan base will let him know about how important he is to the tapestry of Houston sports when he runs through the tunnel this Sunday afternoon from Reliant Stadium.
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