Martin put on injured reserve
In the anticipated fallout from his seasonending high-ankle sprain that required surgery, Texans rookie center Nick Martin is being placed on injured reserve.
The second-round draft pick from Notre Dame had been projected as an immediate starter until he was lost for the season when he was thrown to the ground and hurt his ankle during a blocking drill in a joint practice with the New Orleans Saints.
Meanwhile, the Texans are also placing rookie kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn on injured reserve with a quadriceps injury, along with safety Kurtis Drummond. Drummond has a leg injury.
The Texans like Fairbairn’s potential and want to evaluate him as a potential future kicking option. The Texans are sticking with incumbent Nick Novak as their kicker following a strong preseason in which he connected on all five field goals and seven extra points.
Reserve safety Lonnie Ballentine will remain on the physically unable to perform list to start the regular season after undergoing knee surgery last year. Ballentine is out for at least the first six games under NFL rules.
The Texans cut undrafted rookie wide receiver Tevin Jones ,a League City native who attended Clear Creek High School.
The Texans are now down to 78 players on the active roster and have until Tuesday afternoon to reach the NFL roster limit of 75 players.
They cut rookie defensive tackle Ra’Zahn Howard, who was signed after going unselected in the NFL supplemental draft. The Texans also are cutting wide receiver Josh Lenz, offensive tackles Matt Pierson and Arturo Uzdaviniz, and linebackers Ryan Langford and Carlos Thompson.
“Roster decisions aren’t easy,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said. “It’s a tough time of year, especially for those players.”