The Texans held out veteran corner Bradley Roby against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers due to a slight concussion, according to coach David Culley.
"We didn't want to take a chance on him with that," Culley said.
Roby is suspended for the season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars as he completes the final punishment stemming from a six-game suspension for violating the NFL performance-enhancing drug policy.
“Bradley won’t play in the first game, but Bradley’s fine," Culley said.
With Roby out for the Jacksonville Jaguars game, Vernon Hargreaves will start opposite Terrance Mitchell.
“We feel comfortable with whoever ends up getting that starting job out there in place of Bradley," Culley said. "That cornerback position has been a good position for us. Obviously, there’s not a lot of depth there now because of some of the injuries, but we feel comfortable that whoever we put back there will be good.”
As a reaction to their lack of depth and hoping to upgrade their size and speed at the position, the Texans traded a 2022 seventh-round draft pick to the Green Bay Packers in exchange for cornerback Ka'Dar Hollman (6-foot, 196 pounds, 4.37 speed).
Hollman is a big corner who was drafted in the sixth round by Green Bay out of Toledo where he was a Burlsworth Trophy nominee for the nation's top player who was previously a walk-on.
Hollman, who earned a scholarship at Toledo, played in 14 games with one start last season and had 10 tackles and three passes defensed.
“He has really good corner ability," Culley said. "He has the ability to be able to do what we want to do back there. He’s a smart player. He’s a player that understand what we’re trying to do back there on defense, and we feel like he fits very well there.”
Aaron Wilson has covered the NFL for 20 years and has previously written for The Houston Chronicle and The Baltimore Sun. He’s on Twitter: @AaronWilson_NFL and Instagram: @aaronwilson7128