Trent Brown Has a Strong Case to Start for Texans–

A large talking point surrounding the Houston Texans at training camp will be what the state of their offensive line will look like heading into the regular season.

And really, it makes sense as to why that is.

Not only did the Texans finish last season with another year of below-average offensive line play in front of C.J. Stroud and for their run game, but they did a ton of work on the unit this offseason in hopes of getting their protection right in 2026.

But even with the work the Texans did upfront bringing talent in throughout the past several months, there's a chance that they'll try and keep continuity on the right side of their offensive line by plugging in Trent Brown as their starter at right tackle, depending on how training camp goes.

Braden Smith Might Still Have the Edge, But It's Close

There are really only two ways that the Texans' right tackle competition goes in camp, if the coaching staff is indeed leaving that position up for grabs.

The most likely outcome will probably be for the Texans to roll with their free agent signing from earlier this offseason, Braden Smith, who came over from the Indianapolis Colts on a two-year, $20 million deal in an effort to bring another experienced, starting-caliber tackle who also works well as a run blocker.

And if healthy, Smith can be a welcomed boost on the right side of Houston's line. He has over 100 NFL starts, and when he was playing for Indianapolis, he was an above-average guy at his position.

Jun 9, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans linebacker Azeez al-Shaair, left, and offensive tackle Braden Smith, right, arrive for the team’s minicamp at Houston Methodist Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

But looking back to the Texans' offseason program, Smith wasn't healthy. He was still recovering from neck surgery he had done a few months prior, and it led to Trent Brown taking all of the first-team reps at the right tackle spot in OTAs and minicamp.

And that leads to the second outcome that could come of the Texans' right tackle battle: Houston opts to remain with what worked at right tackle last year, and opt to start Brown over Smith.

Why Trent Brown Might Reclaim His Role at RT

Based on sheer salary numbers between the two, you'd think that Brown is more of a backup swing tackle than a starter. After all, the Texans committed $20 million over two years to Smith, while only handing a one-year, $7 million contract to Brown this offseason.

That could very well be the Texans plan by the time Week 1 arrives. But it's worth noting how well the Texans performed last season when Brown was the starter on the right side of their offensive line.

Houston had a perfect 7-0 record in the regular season when he was healthy and starting, and won their Wild Card outing over the Pittsburgh Steelers before being injured and ruled out for the following game vs. the New England Patriots.

Nov 20, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans offensive tackle Trent Brown (77) is introduced before playing against the Buffalo Bills at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Throughout the seven regular season games he played, Brown was penalized five times, allowed 11 total pressures, and just one sack.

Pro Football Focus graded him as the 40th best tackle out of 89 eligible players (68.6), and graded him in the top 30 in terms of run-blocking. Both of those numbers are better than what Smith did last year in Indianapolis.

So the Texans didn't lose when Brown was on the right side of the line, combined with the fact that he was at least an average-level guy at his position production-wise. That's certainly worth at least some type of attention.

Bottom Line

If Brown is healthy––which at times can be a big if––and outperforms Smith in training camp in the event he's also ready to go from his neck surgery, there's nothing saying that Houston can't continue with what worked when they were last on the field.

He has an edge in terms of tenure with Houston, has a better size profile for the position than Smith, performed better last season, and isn't that far off on an AAV basis salary-wise.

Again, Braden Smith still feels like the one who might have a slight edge in the battle for who starts, but calling the right tackle spot anything less than a competition feels like a bit of an undersell of what Trent Brown brings to the table.

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