When Texans offensive tackle Tytus Howard suffered a concussion against the Denver Broncos, it became obvious that he would need some time to recovery.
Everyone that experiences a concussion, by definition a brain injury, varies in terms of symptoms and recovery time.
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In the case of Howard, he was the only Texans player who sustained a concussion against the Broncos that was cleared under the mandatory NFL concussion protocol to be cleared to return to practice and play Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.
Texans starting quarterback C.J. Stroud and nickel Jalen Pitre have not been cleared to return to practice because both players are still experiencing symptoms. For Stroud, that has included a sensitivity to light and headaches. Pitre has dealt with headaches, too.
Howard, though, has made a full recovery, albeit one after some rough nights with nausea, headaches and an inability to sleep. He’s past those symptoms, though, and was cleared Thursday officially by an independent doctor after practicing two days in a row without symptoms, which is required under the mandatory NFL protocol.
“It feels good to be back,” Howard said. “A little long process last week, but I’m glad to be back. Sick, throwing up, headaches all night, can’t sleep, but I recovered pretty fast, so I feel good.”
Howard doesn’t have an extensive history of concussions, which helped him to recover quickly.
He previously had one concussion.
“I knew what I was getting into,” Howard said. “The process, it is is a tough situation. It’s not something you can rush back from. It’s all symptom-based. So, when you start feeling good, your symptoms start going away, that’s kind of how the concussion protocol works. You can’t be like, ‘Okay, we’re just going to rest this guy for a week.’ If you rest for a week and come back and do something and then get symptoms back, you have to start all over again.
“You kind of have to wait until those symptoms go away for a couple of days to even start the process of doing something. Try to stay away from too much light, try to give the brain a break. I was able to do that and feel good these past couple of days, so happy to be cleared.”
Now, Howard will square off against a talented Titans front headlined by super heavyweight defensive tackles Jeffery Simmons and T’Vondre Sweat.
“We should be good,” Howard said. “Those guys got a talented defensive front. They all play hard, they’re physical, but, if we can handle those guys in the front, we’ll be good on offense.”
The Texans have flexibility with Howard, who can play either tackle or guard spot.
He could potentially shift to right guard Sunday against the Titans with Trent Brown lining up at right tackle if right guard Ed Ingram misses the game due to a knee injury. Ingram is questionable. If Ingram can go, Howard will play right tackle.
Brown is a massive former Pro Bowl blocker who’s listed at 6-foot-8, 380 pounds. He may be even bigger, though.
“Man, Trent is massive,” Howard said. “Trent’s always been a great player. He’s one of the best guys when I came into the league, He’s one of the guys I always looked up to playing, just watching his film.
“Him being one of the older guys, I still come to him and ask him for help, for advice and stuff that I’m going through on the field, and stuff like that. So, there was no doubt that when he got in, he was gonna be able to play.”
How big is Brown? As big as Shaquille O’Neal, says Howard.
“No, Trent’s the biggest guy I’ve ever seen, other than like Shaq,” Howard said. “Shaq came here last year, bro and Trent is just as big as Shaq. It’s crazy.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com