The Texans have signed guard Kasey Studdard, placed inside linebacker Darryl Sharpton on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list and made roster designations with punter Brett Hartmann and guard Thomas Austin.
Hartmann was placed on the Active/Non-Football Illness list. Austin was placed on the Active/Non-Football Injury list. The Texans did not comment on either ailment, but both players, along with Sharpton, count on the active roster.
Sharpton, who tore his right quadriceps tendon last October, was on the field Friday morning but did not practice on the first day of training camp. The third-year pro is expected to return shortly and potentially push veteran Bradie James for a starting job.
"Sharp looked really good this morning," Texans head coach Gary Kubiak said. "We're going to ask him to show us one more time tomorrow, and then he can be back on the field very quickly. He's real close."
Kubiak said Hartmann, who set team records for longest punt and touchbacks on kickoffs in 2011 as an undrafted rookie, is "probably a little ways away." Hartmann is also coming off a season-ending knee injury and is suspended for the first three games of the season because of a failed drug test.
Studdard, 28, was with the Texans from 2007-11. A sixth-round draft pick out of Texas in 2007, he spent last season on injured reserve with an ankle injury and had not signed with another team.
"It feels good to be able to get back with the squad and see all the fellas again, get that camaraderie back," Studdard said. "I've been pushing sleds, pulling sleds, flipping a lot of tires, trying to get these legs in the best shape I can for the season. Now, I've got another chance to play, so I'm excited about that."
The Texans now have 89 players on their active roster, one short of the 90-man limit.
Twitter.com/NickScurfield
