Brennan Scarlett competing for OLB spot

After making an early impact during preseason last year, Brennan Scarlett dealt with highs and lows in his rookie season. Entering his second season, Scarlett feels he is in a better spot for this year's training camp. “Just coming in and knowing what to expect, also knowing the guys around me," Scarlett said on Texans TV. "It helps with the communication, knowing guys’ names and having a relationship. Also, I came in and my body feels a lot better so those are kind of the biggest differences for me.” Scarlett saw action in five games before being placed on Injured Reserve following the Texans Week 6 win over the Indianapolis Colts. The outside linebacker from Stanford worked his way back from injury and was activated on Dec. 17. He finished the regular season healthy and even saw action in both postseason games.Now Scarlett hopes to build on that momentum and earn a spot on the 53-man roster. “Oh man, that was huge," Scarlett said. "Just getting that experience of playing a real-time game and especially those playoff games. Every game is important, obviously, but the playoff atmosphere is just amazing and it helped me kind of kick start the OTAs and now into training camp and I feel comfortable.” The 6-4, 265-pound linebacker has been able to focus on football this offseason, unlike last year when he missed the start of camp with a soft-tissue injury. With the loss of John Simon in free agency, the Texans will be looking to add depth to the outside linebackers group. Will Scarlett be the player to fill that role? With a number of players competing for a roster spot, Scarlett still has a lot to accomplish but is on the right track with his work ethic and playmaking skills. “He’s been doing great as far as making plays out there,” Whitney Mercilus said. ‘I know you guys saw him in the preseason last year making plays on the quarterback, making plays in the backfield and everything. So, I would say just being more of a student of the game, just understanding what he can do, watch his matchups and things like that, understanding his ability against versus his opponents and stuff like that. Man, really impressed with him as well.” The Texans continue with Day 3 of training camp at The Greenbrier Sports Performance Center on Friday.Twitter.com/DeepSlant