The Houston Texans activated 13 players off their Reserve/COVID-19 List on Wednesday, including WR Brandin Cooks, DL Jonathan Greenard and K Ka'imi Fairbairn among others.
Players returned to practice on Wednesday inside NRG Stadium to prepare for their Week 17 opponent, the San Francisco 49ers.
"It's definitely helpful for the team to see everybody coming back from off the list and getting guys out there running around," DB Desmond King ll said. "Just getting back acclimated to the team and the playbook."
In last week's 41-29 victory against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Texans were without 10 starters and activated 11 practice squad players. This week, QB Davis Mills will get his No. 1 offensive weapon back with Cooks. The eight-year veteran wideout, just 55 yards shy of a second-consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season, caught both touchdown passes from Mills in the Dec. 19 win at Jacksonville before landing on the COVID-19 list.
"It'll be exciting to have him (Cooks) back, obviously," Mills said. "Brandin was back, Justin Britt was back and a bunch of others. The team's coming back together, and everyone's excited to attack it moving forward."
The Texans activated the following players on Wednesday: Britt, Cooks, Fairbairn, Greenard, LB Kamu Grugier-Hill, LB Neville Hewitt, DL Jordan Jenkins, DL Jaleel Johnson, DL Roy Lopez, DB Eric Murray, DL Derek Rivers, OL Lane Taylor, LB Eric Wilson. The lengthy transaction comes just one day after the NFL shortened its quarantine period from 10 to five days following the revised Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) guidelines.
Houston did add two new players to the Reserve/COVID-19 List on Wednesday: DL Ron'Dell Carter and WR Chris Moore. OL Tytus Howard, RB David Johnson, DB Lonnie Johnson Jr., LB Tae Davis are also currently on the COVID list.
The Texans will travel to San Francisco for their final road game of the 2021 season. Sunday's kickoff from Levi's Stadium is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on CBS and SportsRadio 610.
Watch the Houston Texans take on the Tennessee Titans at NRG Stadium on January 9. Kickoff is at noon. Click here for tickets.
