Cornerback Johnathan Joseph is day-to-day with a sore groin as the Texans prepare to host the Baltimore Ravens at Reliant Stadium in Week 7.
Joseph has been a full participant in practice the last two weeks but has uncharacteristically allowed several big plays in the last two games. The 2011 Pro Bowler missed practice with a groin issue on the Wednesday before the Texans played Tennessee in Week 4. He was limited in practice with a groin issue that Thursday and Friday.
"We've given him some Wednesdays off, given him some time off," Texans coach Gary Kubiak said Monday. "He's had some soreness, nothing to keep him from playing. He's played with it before. The biggest thing is we're about 350 to 400 snaps into this season, so it's a lot of snaps and obviously he's on the field all the time covering their best.
"We may have to be smart with him this week and get him to Sunday. We think he'll be OK. It's something that he's been able to work through before, and hopefully, he'll work through it again."
Joseph was in man-to-man coverage on a 41-yard touchdown catch by Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson in the first quarter on Sunday night. He left the game for cornerback Alan Ball after Rodgers completed a 10-yard pass to Nelson on third-and-two midway through the second quarter. Rodgers promptly completed a 21-yard touchdown pass to Nelson with Ball in coverage.
In Week 5, New York Jets wide receiver Jeremy Kerley had a 36-yard catch past Joseph after Joseph lost his footing at the line of scrimmage. Receiver Clyde Gates had a 27-yard catch on Joseph earlier in the game.
Last season, Joseph helped the Texans improve from 32nd to third in passing defense after signing as a free agent from the Cincinnati Bengals. The Texans put Joseph on the opposing team's best wide receiver each week, and he routinely shut them down.
"I'm fine to go," Joseph said Sunday night after the Texans' loss to Green Bay. "Obviously, I will see how I feel tomorrow when I come back in. I will probably be sore tomorrow. As of right now, I am fine."
The Ravens rank 11th in the NFL with 272.7 passing yards per game. Quarterback Joe Flacco's top three wide receivers all average more than 15 yards: Anquan Boldin (429 yards, 15.3 average), Torrey Smith (394 yards, 18.8 average) and former Texan Jacoby Jones (185 yards, 16.8 average).
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