The Houston Texans started the season off with a loss after falling 14-9 to the Los Angeles Rams. The team left a ton to be desired in this contest, and quarterback C.J. Stroud wasn't happy with the team's performance.
Houston also saw starting tight end Cade Stover break his foot, who will be out indefinitely. On Sunday, he caught a team-high four passes for 22 yards, but with him slated to miss time, the Texans have a hole in the TE room.
Brevin Jordan and Irv Smith Jr. are also on IR, leaving Dalton Schultz as the only healthy TE on the roster. Houston will need to fill in that void, and bringing back free agent TE Jordan Akins seems like a logical addition.
Texans Should Bring Back Jordan Akins
Akins came into the NFL as a third-round pick in the 2018 NFL draft by the Texans, and spent the first five years of his career with them. From 2018-2022, he had 151 catches for 1,755 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.
In three seasons of his five seasons in Houston, Atkins finished with more than 400 receiving yards, including a career-high 495 receiving yards in 2022. The Texans wouldn't be asking him to step in and become their starter, but he has shown that he could be a solid backup TE in the NFL.
The free agent market isn't really solid at tight end and instead of giving up draft capital in order to get another TE, signing Atkins to a one-year deal doesn't look like a bad idea.
He's a player who has familiarity with the building, even though he was there under a different coaching staff. Atkins is a 33-year-old who could provide this team with a nice veteran leader and player.
There still seems to be a possibility that Stover comes back this season, but if that does happen, it'll be a couple of weeks anyway. The Texans won't sit here and not add anyone to that room. They have one week until they take the field again, as they play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football on Sept. 15.
That gives them an extra day to add someone to the team but it would be wise to do that sooner rather than later. It'll be something to watch this week for Houston, as they watched another TE get hit with an injury.