Texans' Tytus Howard still in cast, Jimmie Ward, Christian Harris sidelined

Texans starting right offensive tackle Tytus Howard practiced Monday while wearing a cast on his left hand.

Howard hasn’t been ruled out for the first game of the season against the Baltimore Ravens, but is still not fully recovered and dealing with swelling from breaking two bones in his hand during the preseason and undergoing surgery and having metal hardware inserted. 

Veteran right tackle George Fant has worked with the first-team offense with Howard sidelined, and the Texans traded with the Arizona Cardinals to acquire offensive tackle Joshua Jones, a former third-round draft pick from the University of Houston.

Texans veteran safety Jimmie Ward isn’t practicing Monday. He has been dealing with a groin injury and recently had a dental procedure.

Texans linebacker Blake Cashman had a setback recently with a strained hamstring and remains sidelined at practice. And fellow starting linebacker Christian Harris isn’t practicing. He was jogging prior to the start of practice in uniform except for his helmet, which is the same activity level he had last week.

The Texans negotiated injury settlements with defensive tackle Roy Lopez (strained hamstring, four weeks) and offensive guard Keaton Sutherland (strained abductor, four to six weeks), removing them from injured reserve.

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com