The Houston Texans have relied on veteran wideout Kenny Stills as their third receiver since the start of the season, but the club may have to go back to a more familiar target.
Stills injured his hamstring and ankle and was limited in practice all week leading up to the team’s Week 5 tilt with the Atlanta Falcons at NRG Stadium. If Stills can’t go for Houston, offensive coordinator Tim Kelly has faith in second-year receiver Keke Coutee to step up.
“I think Keke offers a bunch of different skills, so whoever’s available for us, we’re going to figure out a way to utilize them,” Kelly told reporters Thursday.
The problem for Coutee has been availability and health through his first two seasons. In 2018, the fifth-round pick from Texas Tech caught 28 passes for 287 yards and a touchdown through six games, missing 10 of them with a chronic hamstring injury.
In 2019, Coutee injured his ankle in the first preseason game on Aug. 8, and the Stills trade on Aug. 31 further relegated him to scraps for playing time. Now, Coutee could be a key figure for the Texans’ passing game against the Falcons, especially since he has been healthy and practicing for the past four weeks.
“I think everybody that’s been out there practicing — that’s the biggest thing, is being to go out there and practice,” Kelly said. “So, he’s been out there the past couple of weeks working hard, trying to build that relationship up with [quarterback] Deshaun (Watson) and doing a good job at that.”
Through two games in 2019, Coutee has produced three catches for 18 yards on seven targets. While looking more like the stat line for just one game’s worth of work, Coutee has proven capable of much more, and the Texans will need it from them as they seek to secure a 3-2 after their encounter with Atlanta.
