The future is bright for offensive lineman Nick Martin.
Just ask left tackle Duane Brown.
"I think Nick is going to be a great player," the 10-year veteran said on Tuesday night. "He showed some great flashes early on as a young player."
The team's second-round draft pick in 2016, Martin missed the regular season with an ankle injury. But the Notre Dame product made quite an impression on Brown and the Texans in OTAs and a portion of training camp. His battles with nose tackle Vince Wilfork were good tests for the young blocker.
"The game wasn't too big for him," Brown said. "He went against Vince and those guys every day in practice. He showed a lot of promise. I'm looking forward to getting him back."
For the bulk of his career with the Fighting Irish Martin played center. But for the final 10 games of his junior season in 2014 he was the starter at left guard. All told, he started on the line 37 times in college, inlcuding the final 26 games of his career there.