For the second consecutive season, the Houston Texans will spend the first week of August somewhere other than the sweltering heat of Houston. Last season, they spent a week in Ohio following the Hall of Fame Game, and this season it will be a return to the Greenbrier resort in West Virginia, where they spent three weeks of camp in both 2017 and 2018.

The goals for the week are simple. First and foremost, continue to improve in all facets of football, so the team is ready for their season opener against the Rams on September 7. Secondarily, the team is trying to get out of the heat, and build some team camaraderie by getting out of town. All of these activities will lead up to a trip to Minnesota next week to take on the Vikings in the first preseason game of 2025.

As the team gets ready to hit the practice field on Monday morning, here are the four biggest questions that have bubbled to the surface, nine practices in:

4. Do we finally see Christian Harris?
Knock on wood, the Texans have managed to stay pretty healthy through the first nine practices at training camp. The only injuries that have required overt medical attention were the season ending ankle injury to rookie DT Kyonte Hamilton, and a lower leg injury to rookie safety Jaylen Reed. Meanwhile, several players on the PUP list are working out on the side field. Then there is Christian Harris, who is on the active roster, but still not practicing. This comes on the heels of a 2024 season where Harris missed the first 14 weeks of the season with a weird calf injury. DeMeco Ryans had said during the spring that Harris would be good to go for camp, but thus far, that’s not been the case. This is a contract year for Harris, making this next wave of injury mystery even more unsettling. Perhaps, we see him practice this week in West Virginia.

3. Do the areas exceeding expectations continue to show progress?
It’s probably too early in camp to definitively label certain position groups (or subsets of position groups) the “most improved,” seeing as actual improvement is determined over more than nine practices, but there are certainly aspects of this team that have exceeded expectations, so far. The tight end group jumps to mind first. DeMeco Ryans has called Dalton Schultz “the old Dalton,” in a good way, and Ryans and Nick Caserio both have gone out of their way to praise second year tight end Cade Stover’s advancement in Year 2. Beyond that, it appears that the secondary has the potential to be the deepest it’s been in team history, and the rookie class, across the board, all look ready to contribute in some way, led by right tackle Aireontae Ersery.

2. Has the starting offensive line revealed itself?
Speaking of Ersery, he is part of what looks to be a starting five that, at least early on, Ryans has settled upon, and it is a massive shuffle from last year’s underperforming unit. From left to right, at all three padded practices this past week it went like this — LT Cam Robinson, LG Laken Tomlinson, C Jake Andrew’s, RG Tytus Howard, and RT Ersery. When asked about the starters, Ryans (and Caserio, for that matter) seem to be more focused on finding the nine linemen who will make the roster right now than the five who will start in Los Angeles in Week 1, but this week is a huge week for solidifying the starters, given the first preseason game is Saturday in Minnesota.

1. Where are we on the installation of the new offensive system?
The short answer is, well, let’s just say it is quite evident that there are a lot of new moving parts in getting new OC Nick Caley’s system implemented. More practices have been won by the defense than the offense, but that would likely be happening even with the same offensive system in place for the last two years. This defense is really, really good. C.J. Stroud has, as expected, had some really good moments, but he has thrown an alarming number of interceptions in practice, and by and large, they’ve been bad decisions, not picks thrown because he’s getting pressured. Don’t get me wrong, he is getting pressures A LOT, but the picks have been largely his fault. It’s not a five alarm fire or anything, but something to watch as the second half of camp unfolds.

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