Texans Rookie Is Poised for Big Role Once He Returns From Injury

The Houston Texans have been pretty banged up with injuries through the first three weeks of the new NFL season.

A good chunk of those injuries have been either minor injuries that have kept guys out for a couple of weeks, or have placed them on short-term injured reserve for at least four weeks.

One of those names on short-term injured reserve is one of the Texans' premier rookies, defensive tackle Kayden McDonald, who suffered an ankle injury heading into the 2026 season that's kept him sidelined until at least Week 5, thus putting an exciting rookie campaign on a brief pause.

However, when the time comes for McDonald to make his way back into the mix for the Texans' defense, there's little doubt that he's going to plug into a pretty significant role quite fast.

Keep an Eye on Kayden McDonald When He's Deemed Healthy

McDonald's path to a decent-sized role within the Texans' defensive line rotation has been recently carved out a bit further with the news surrounding veteran defensive tackle Mario Edwards Jr. tearing his ACL, and thus set to miss the remainder of the 2026 season.

Now, before Edwards Jr. had gone down, McDonald was bound to get a good share of the defensive tackle snaps his way when healthy as is.

He was one of Houston's two top 40 picks in this year's draft, and has proven production at Ohio State, even in just one year as a starter, that makes him stand out as an impactful player pretty quickly at the NFL level.

Dec 6, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes defensive lineman Kayden McDonald (98) reacts before the 2025 Big Ten championship game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

However, without Edwards in the mix for the rest of the year, the Texans' defensive tackle room is now left to just three healthy members heading into Week 4. Only one defensive tackle sits on the practice squad, meaning Houston is pretty shallow in terms of depth at the position at the moment.

Once McDonald is back to full health, though, that status can shift pretty significantly. McDonald can plug in as the Texans' DT3, securing a little over 30% of the defensive snaps on a given week, and should only see that number increase the deeper we get into his rookie season.

After all, McDonald was drafted to be a future starter in the middle of this Texans defensive line. As to how quickly he claims that role remains to be seen, but he certainly could have an easier route to making an early impact now that this position group is one player thinner.

What to Look For Moving Forward

We won't know exactly what's next surrounding McDonald's status this season until the Texans officially activate him from the injured reserve list. He could be deemed healthy as soon as next week, or a few weeks further down the road.

The earliest the team can do so is after Week 4's game against the Dallas Cowboys, where they can also open a 21-day practice window to get him back on the practice field before officially elevating to the 53-man roster.

However, when the time comes for McDonald to finally get back in the lineup, expect to see him getting a bit more snaps his way than what was first expected.

Because unless Houston brings on another defensive tackle to their current roster via trade or free agency signing, that depth and added firepower could certainly be utilized down the line this season. And we know McDonald, albeit a bit young, has a chance to provide exactly what the Texans need.

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