Jadeveon Clowney returned to practice Tuesday for the first time in over a week. The third-year outside linebacker had been dealing with knee soreness during the second week of training camp.
"He was only supposed to do individual today and he actually did more than that so it was good to see him do that," head coach Bill O'Brien said Tuesday.
Clowney did not travel with the team for the Texans first preseason game against San Francisco. John Simon and Whitney Mercilus started at outside linebacker in Houston's 24-13 win over the 49ers. Simon's fumble recovery for a touchdown in the first quarter gave the Texans an early 7-0 lead.
"John Simon and Whitney Mercilus are really playing well," O'Brien said. "I mean, they are really playing at a high level so J.D. comes back and he adds to that mix and he was out there running around today pretty good it looked like."
Rookie center Nick Martin and cornerback A.J. Bouye, who did not play in Sunday's game, also returned to practice on Tuesday.
The Texans will host joint practice against the New Orleans Saints on Thursday and the two teams will face each other Saturday in preseason. Kickoff at NRG Stadium is set for 7 p.m. on ABC-13 and SportsRadio 610.
Take a look at the best pictures from the #Texans preseason opener against the 49ers.
