I believe that I speak for a pretty hefty portion of native Houstonians when I say that Sunday afternoon's "Battle Red Day" will be one of the most emotionally significant in recent franchise history. for the Houston Texans. For, the event will mark the first time in exactly 673 calendar days that explosive wide receiver Tank Dell will take the field as an active participant in a professional football game. For further clarity, you can interpret that as one year, 10 months and four days or even 96 weeks and one day.
Regardless of how one wants to slice it, Dell's return has been a long time in the making. Standing behind the podium yesterday afternoon with the media, Dell added his own excited commentary to the conversation by stating, "I don't care if the first catch is two yards, five yards, I'm spiking the ball and doing what I gotta do."
The former Houston Cougar even went so far as to proactively address some of the skepticism surrounding how effective he may or may not be upon hitting the field on Sunday afternoon.
Tank Dell address skeptics ahead of his return for the Houston Texans on Sunday against the New York Giants
One of the most common concerns floating around the streets of "Texans Twitter" is whether or not Dell's body will be ready for NFL level contact as was the case before his run of major injuries began later in the 2023 season. "I know it's a lot of questions like, how is he gonna look when he gets tackled?" smirked Dell, before emphatically finishing with, "I don't care about none of that. I'm ready to get tackled. I'm gonna be joyful. Ya'll gonna see the passion I have after I have that first catch."
I get it. Having overly optimistic expectations of a player who hasn't caught a pass in the NFL in over 600 days would be a certain level of inconsiderate to Dell's return process. However, by Dell's own excitement and admission, he's felt comfortable enough physically and mentally to potentially return to action one month ago if allowed to. By that reasoning, it's basically a case of "if not now, then when?" with the fourth-year pass catcher.
The city is already buzzing ahead of Sunday's content against the New York Giants. When Dell finally makes his way through the tunnel, the noise level might reach levels of a minor earthquake. Then, if and when Dell hauls in that first catch as predicted, be prepared for none of the painful memories of the past to factor into the sheer volume of outpouring love and admiration that will inevitably rain down from the rafters of Reliant Stadium.
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