Texans WR Tank Dell Not Practicing to Start Training Camp–

The Houston Texans made waves heading into training camp once they released their PUP/NFI list designations before the first day of team practice on Wednesday.

That's because Tank Dell wasn't among the names listed in those designations, who comes into this season preparing for his return from a devastating knee injury––including damage to his ACL, MCL, PCL, and meniscus––that was suffered back in December of 2024, and kept him out for all of last season as he recovered.

But while Dell is set to make his long-awaited return this season and is officially off the PUP list to start training camp, that doesn't mean he'll be ready to go for practice right off the bat.

Nick Caserio Explans Why Tank Dell Won't Be Practicing to Start Camp

In fact, Texans general manager Nick Caserio even made that expectation for Dell clear before the team kicked things off on Wednesday.

"As it pertains to Tank [Dell], he's not on the PUP list," Caserio said Wednesday morning. "Tank's worked really hard to put himself in [this] position. I'd say he still has some work to do. So, you're not going to see him practice. Like, he won't be on a practice field. He still has some things that he's going to go through."

Caserio then walked through the team's thought process surrounding Dell's availability in camp. More than anything, keeping him off the PUP list but out of practice is done so the Texans wideout can still participate in drills that he wouldn't otherwise be able to if he were one of those designations.

Jun 10, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dell (1) participates during the team’s minicamp at Houston Methodist Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Any player on the PUP list cannot participate in any practice until they're cleared. That's the case for both safety M.J. Stewart and linebacker E.J. Speed, who were a part of those previous designations ahead of camp, and can't get on the practice field because of it.

So for Dell, the Texans want to get him up to speed by working off to the side in some "ramp-up work" before he's able to get his feet wet in a full-pads, contact practice, which is another step forward in intensity compared to the drills he'll be participating in.

That'll come in due time, but for now, the Texans appear to be taking that cautious, methodical approach surrounding Dell's usage like they were rumored to do before camp even started.

"But the reason that we're kind of keeping him alive and keeping him off the list is because it enables him to participate in some drills or activities that you wouldn't otherwise be able to participate in if you were on a reserve list," Caserio continued.

"So, like, you won't see him practice. You're going to watch practice and wonder where Tank is... Well, it's by design. So he's got some ramp-up work that he's still going to do, but there are some other things that we can do with him to kind of incorporate him into some team/crossover/walkthrough situations."

Texans fans will be able to see their fan favorite wideout catching passes in 11-on-11s once they get deeper into training camp. But for now, expect the team to take things slow until they're extremely confident that he's back to 100%, and nothing less.

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