Tank Dell's entire 2025 season vanished as soon as he suffered a gruesome leg injury a few days before Christmas in 2024.
He could deliver a gift to the Texans with a timely return in 2026.
The Texans aren't committing to a specific return timetable for Dell, who suffered a significant knee injury in Week 16 of the 2024 campaign and missed the entirety of 2025, but they're encouraged by the progress he's made. Don't put a spring expectation on him just yet, though.
"Tank, he's grinding. Great attitude," Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said Tuesday at the NFL's Annual League Meeting in Phoenix, via KPRC's Aaron Wilson. "Don't know if OTA's he'll be there, but I know he'll back for us at some point this year.
"As I told Tank, it's not a matter of getting back to OTA's just to get back, it's just a matter of getting back in a really good spot physically to where you stay there. That's the main thing. It's not about how quickly he returns. It's just about Tank returning because we saw what Tank can do, the playmaking that he provides to our entire team. Just getting him back, whenever that time is, it's going to lift our team."
Houston could certainly use Dell's contributions. The 2025 Texans finished with the league's 18th-ranked offense, including a 14th-ranked passing attack, but lacked a true No. 2 receiving option opposite C.J. Stroud's favorite receiver, Nico Collins. Tight end Dalton Schultz finished second on the team in receiving yards at 777 with three touchdowns, more than 300 yards behind Collins (1,117 yards and six scores).
Dell's injury and Stefon Diggs' departure meant Stroud needed to rely on rookie Jayden Higgins and usual third option Xavier Hutchinson, lowering their ceiling slightly. That potential dropped further once it became clear Houston's offensive line, while improved, couldn't form a firm wall of protection in front of Stroud.
Stroud's struggles snowballed at the worst time in the postseason, turning it over seven times in two playoff games. Luckily, his team's defense managed to score two touchdowns in a 30-6 win over Pittsburgh on Wild Card Weekend, but that good fortune didn't carry over to New England, where Stroud's meltdown led to a 28-16 loss to the eventual AFC champions.
If the Texans are going to clear the hurdle -- the Divisional Round -- that has stopped them in their tracks in each of the last three seasons, they'll need as many weapons available as possible. A healthy Dell would, in theory, provide that boost.
That's why Ryans isn't rushing Dell back. He knows the most important days arrive in winter, not spring.
Houston will continue to be patient as the organization keeps its eyes trained on January.