As the Houston Texans prepare for Saturday's preseason openera against the Minnesota Vikings, the running back room's outlook is an uncertain as ever. Starting RB Joe Mixon has been held off the field with a foot injury and could miss even more time, while free-agent signing Nick Chubb has struggled to turn back the clock to his pre-injury form, which has left the backfield in flux.
The Texans' RB room took a turn for the worst this week as Chubb has missed Wednesday and Thursday's practice, leaving his outlook unclear. On top of that, the Houston Chronicle's Sam Warren reported that injury-prone RB Dameon Pierce is still a way's away from participating in team scrimmages despite receiving his medical clearance earlier this week.
While in the improvements in Pierce's health were initially encouraging, his latest absence could spell bad news for his future in Houston.
Texans RB Dameon Pierce's Absence Could Cost Him His Job
Even though Pierce has spent three seasons with the Texans, his spot on their roster is far from guaranteed. The former 2022 fourth-rounder has already seen his responsibilities shrink in back-to-back seasons because of the additions Devin Singletary in 2023 and Mixon last offseason, and failing to suit up in the preseason won't give Houston any reason to keep him around.
Pierce's experience would've made him the de facto RB1 this weekend, but now he's missing out on that opportunity. Instead, the likes of British Brooks, Dare Ogunbowale, Jawhar Jordan, Woody Marks, and J.J. Taylor will split the backfield duties as they vye to take over the RB3 role behind Mixon and Chubb.
Hopefully, Pierce's absence is a one-off situation so that he can prove himself sooner rather than later. He did average a career-high 7.3 yards per carry on 40 attempts last season, indicating that he still has juice in the tank even if his role isn't as big as it was in his rookie year. That's the type of player who could give Houston's offense a boost when needed in the middle of a game.
On top of that, Pierce must heal quickly if he wants to prove to the Texans that he deserves to be a long-term fixture in their attack. The 2026 season will mark the final year on his rookie contract, and strong performance can make the difference between receiving a multi-year contract and one-year offers next offseason.
For now, Houston fans will close follow Pierce's updates to see whether or not this is the beginning of the end of his time as a Texan.