O’Brien says being cautious with OT Kalil is part of plan
It has been just over a week since left tackle Matt Kalil last practiced for the Texans.
Kalil missed the entire season last year for the Carolina Panthers because of a knee injury before signing a one-year contract worth up to $7.5 million.
Kalil said last week that he got his foot stepped on in practice. He has limped frequently during training camp. He hasn’t participated in any capacity or dressed out for practice since Aug. 14.
Texans coach Bill O’Brien has reiterated several times that Kalil remains the starting left tackle heading into the season opener against the New Orleans Saints. However, Roderick Johnson has been starting at left tackle, earned solid reviews and will start again Saturday night against the Dallas Cowboys.
O’Brien emphasized that the team is being careful with Kalil and following through on its original plan to manage his workload.
“We’ve seen a lot of good things from him when he’s played and practiced, and we had a plan for him coming in to manage his reps to get him ready for the season and that’s what we’re trying to do,” O’Brien said. “We’re trying to stick to that. He was signed in free agency and he came off of a knee injury from his year in Carolina, and we’re just trying to do a good job of managing him the best we can to get him ready for the season.
“Certain things come up during training camp that weren’t anticipated, but there are several players that we had a mapped-out plan for relative to practices and games and all those things. That type of deal with Roderick and those tackles getting some more reps was definitely anticipated before camp.”