Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dell hasn’t played since December 2024 after a severe knee injury in Kansas City. Still, he says his recovery is reaching a point where he expects a full workload at training camp this summer.
For Texans fans. the silence since December 2024 has been hard to miss—Tank Dell hasn’t appeared in an NFL game since that point. The wait began during a game in Kansas City when he dislocated his kneecap and tore several ligaments in his knee. an injury that forced him to miss all of last season while he worked through recovery.
This offseason, Dell has been putting in limited work with the team, and over the weekend he sounded like a player who can finally see the next step clearly. He said he feels ready to handle a full plate when Houston gets to training camp this summer.
“It’s been a roller coaster ride, to say the least. It’s been a long journey, but I’m built for it, and I’m ready for it, and I was ready for it. I’m getting through it, and it’s light at the end of the tunnel, so I’m almost there,” Dell said.
The timeline explains why those words land with weight. Dell went from a receiver who was building momentum to an offseason and regular-season absence after the injury’s severity. Yet he also described a steady focus during the process. saying. “I always knew that’s the main thing. and I always kept that at the front of my head.”.
Dell entered the league as a 2023 third-round pick. and his early production made the injury feel even more personal for the Texans’ receiving plans. In his first 25 NFL appearances, he recorded 98 catches for 1,376 yards and 10 touchdowns. If he can return anywhere close to that form. it would give Houston a key piece back in the receiving group—turning a painful interruption into a genuine reset.
The recovery now appears to be shifting from rehab work toward football work, and the next marker is the one Dell highlighted himself: training camp this summer, with the expectation that he’ll be able to go full speed.
Texans Tank Dell knee injury training camp Kansas City NFL recovery
Knee injuries are no joke, hope he actually makes it through camp.
I feel like this is just PR talk like “light at the end of the tunnel” every time. If he was done for last season then what changed, did they just rebrand it rehab?
Wait so he tore ligaments but “dislocated his kneecap” sounds like a separate thing? Either way, I’m guessing he’ll be back week 1 and then get hurt again, that’s how it goes.
Tank Dell needs to take it slow for once. People keep saying “full workload” like that doesn’t mean risking it. Also he was popping early, so of course everyone is acting like he’ll be the same guy, but knees don’t just bounce back like that. If he can’t go full speed in training camp then they should stop rushing him.