HOUSTON – Texans wide receiver Tank Dell suffered a “significant” left knee injury on a horrific play that left his teammates emotional and visibly upset on the field and inside the locker room.
Dell sustained a dislocated knee cap, per league sources.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans indicated that Dell will remain overnight in Kansas City as next steps are being planned medically.
Dell immediately grabbed his knee and was in visible pain after catching a touchdown pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud as wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson collided with him.
Dell was transported to a local hospital in Kansas City, per league sources, for further evaluation and treatment. His leg has been immobilized to deal with the swelling. One logical option is surgery. A return this season is regarded as the most unlikely of medical scenarios, and Dell will face another lengthy rehabilitation in all likelihood.
The former University of Houston standout was having one of his best performances of the season Saturday against the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs when he got hurt.
Dell was on the ground in agony, surrounded by a large group of highly emotional teammates, including quarterback C.J. Stroud and running back Joe Mixon, before being carted off the field in an ambulance. He is expected to be examined at a local hospital in Kansas City, as was offensive guard Shaq Mason for his knee injury.
Dell had caught six passes for 98 yards and the 30-yard touchdown on seven targets before getting hurt as he scored in the back of the end zone.
The former third-round draft pick had set his ambitions on upgrading his contributions for the stretch run of the season for the AFC South champions. Now, his season is over.
“I’m definitely trying to improve my role and become a big factor on this team,” Dell told KPRC 2 recently. “Me, personally, I feel like my season hasn’t been good. I know what I’m capable of. I feel like I can do way much better. It starts with me. I got to go out there with a clean slate, a clean mind and make the plays I’m capable of making.”
Dell had been healthy this season until now after a rocky end to last season as he broke his fibula after setting a franchise rookie record with seven touchdown catches. After making a full recover from that injury setback, Dell made another speedy recovery from a gunshot wound, a flesh wound through his leg, when he was an innocent bystander as a victim in a mass shooting in Florida at a party.
Fourteen games into the season, Dell’s role hadn’t been as expansive as last season. He caught 45 passes for 569 yards and two touchdowns in the first 14 games and was averaging 12.6 yards per catch. He’s on pace to finish the season with 55 catches for 691 yards. He’s been targeted 74 times.
A year ago, as a rookie, Dell was on pace for 1,205 yards before he broke his leg.
During the offseason, the Texans traded for Pro Bowl wide receiver Stefon Diggs and invested a three-year, $75 million contract in top wide receiver Nico Collins.
Diggs is out for the season. Collins missed five games with a pulled hamstring, but has been dominant since being activated from injured reserve and caught a pair of touchdown passes from Stroud against Miami.
The Texans’ wide receiver position is now in flux behind Collins and will likely turn to Robert Woods, Xavier Hutchinson and John Metchie III whenever Metchie returns from a shoulder injury.
It’s a lot of calamity for a talented position group that entered the season with sky-high expectations.