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Texans Could Face Bucs Without Two Key Offensive Starters

The Houston Texans could be facing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers without two major offensive pieces.
Jared Koch|
Dec 8, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs (78) and quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) warms up before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Dec 8, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs (78) and quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) warms up before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

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Houston Texans

It could be a long night in the trenches for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. the Houston Texans, depending on how their injury situation pans out on Monday.

According to the Buccaneers' final injury report, starting left tackle Tristan Wirfs will be out as he rehabs his offseason knee injury, while starting right tackle Luke Goedeke is listed as questionable with a foot injury. If Goedeke isn't ready to go, former Texans tackle Charlie Heck will get the start on the right side.

Wirfs' absence for Week 2 was long expected, dating back to earlier this summer, once initially getting arthroscopic knee surgery, even without being listed on the Injured Reserve to start the season, along with Buccaneers' injured wideout Chris Godwin.

However, Goedeke recently found his way to the Bucs' injury report in practice this week, putting his status for Monday night in doubt.

Goedeke did appear in the Bucs' Saturday practice in limited fashion, which does add optimism for him to be ready to go vs. Houston, but still won't lock him in until officially upgraded.

The Bucs were able to hold off an Atlanta Falcons pass rush without Wirfs pretty effectively in Week 1, but without both Wirfs and Goedeke against this dominant Texans defensive front, it could be a much steeper challenge for Tampa Bay under the Monday night lights.

The Texans' defense starts and ends with their top-ranked edge rushing duo upfront in Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter, who would each certainly love to go against backup-level tackles to get to Mayfield in the backfield.

Anderson kicked off his third year with the Texans, having a strong performance vs. the Rams, logging a sack against Matthew Stafford, along with three total tackles, two hurries, and a team-best 91.0 PFF grade.

Dec 25, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (51) runs onto the field before the game a
Dec 25, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. (51) runs onto the field before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

As for Hunter, it wasn't as explosive a performance in Houston's Week 1 loss, but he still had three hurries and two tackles to his name, finishing with the second-best 86.0 PFF grade.

Last season, there were five games across the year in which the Texans had sacks from each of Anderson and Hunter within the same day, and in a matchup vs. Tampa Bay with a depleted offensive tackle room, Houston could have a perfect route to making their first entry into that trend for the new season.

If the Buccaneers don't have Goedeke in the fold, expect a big day from both Anderson and Hunter upfront, but his status will likely become clearer once kickoff nears at 6 PM CT on Monday.

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Jared Koch
JARED KOCH

Jared Koch is the Deputy Editor of Houston Texans On SI and has covered the NFL since 2023. Jared is a graduate of Western Kentucky University. His works have also appeared on MSN, Yahoo, and Bleacher Report.

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