Uber-athletic ex-Pittsburgh Steelers OL to be Texans’ starting LG after season-ending injury

Former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Kendrick Green will start for the rest of the season with the Houston Texans after starting left guard Kenyon Green suffered a dislocated shoulder that will knock him out for the rest of the season.

In a contract year, this is the second chance Green has been waiting for in his career after the Steelers traded him last season to the Texans. The Texans decided to move Green away from center, where he started for the Steelers, and play him at his natural left guard spot. In his first action with the Texans against the New York Jets, Green had an up-and-down day.

The Steelers’ third-round pick out of Illinois in the 2021 NFL Draft, Green started from day one for the Steelers at center. However, he struggled in his rookie season, even being benched for J.C. Hassenauer at one point. In his second season, Green was the backup to Mason Cole and then he was traded in his third season to the Texans.

Since then, Green has spent time with the Texans, but he missed most of the 2023 season with a torn meniscus suffered against the Steelers.

PITTSBURGH — Russell Wilson grinned as he sat at the dais following the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 26-18 win against the New York Giants and considered how to describe the difference between his first and second outings as a Steeler.

“I felt more fluid,” the quarterback said, settling on a descriptor. “I haven’t really missed any games in my lifetime, and you miss five, six games, and you’re just, ‘OK, all right, you got to get your rhythm.’ … Sometimes it’s not easy every possession, especially when you’re going against good teams, and so you just respond. I think the most important thing is just response.”

With 278 yards and a touchdown as he completed 20 of 28 attempts Monday night, Wilson set a franchise record for most passing yards by a Steeler in his first two games with the organization (542), surpassing Earl Morrall’s 504 yards in 1957, per ESPN Research.

“I just thought he didn’t need to warm up to it,” coach Mike Tomlin said of Wilson’s second outing. “A little less rust than the week before, but I’m not surprised by his capabilities.”

Wilson and the offense moved the ball almost seamlessly in their first three possessions, but each time, the drive finished in a field goal. Two would-be touchdown throws to George Pickens were called back and another drive stalled out after back-to-back gains of 20-plus yards. Wilson lamented the two Pickens touchdowns called back, including the second, where the receiver got his right foot down twice but because his left foot didn’t hit after the catch, it was ruled incomplete.

“It’s an interesting rule,” Wilson said. “It’s like, obviously, we thought maybe he had dragged his toe, maybe he got it down. We get the same foot down twice, and it’s clear one and then another one, No. 2, it’s almost like you get a knee down, and it counts as a touchdown. And getting two rights [feet], maybe it should count. But I don’t know.

“… George had a great game. I know obviously he wants those two touchdowns. We all want those — it really would’ve broken out the game early on for us.”

Though his first two TD throws were called back, Wilson eventually found wide receiver Calvin Austin III for a 29-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, marking Austin’s second score of the day after a third-quarter punt return to the house. Wilson’s touchdown to Austin had just a 28.2% completion probability, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, giving the quarterback a league-leading 12 total touchdowns with less than a 30% completion probability since the start of last season.