Texans offense struggles with injuries ahead of Thursday night face off with Jets

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- On Monday, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans shared an update on star receiver Stefon Diggs, saying, "We are still evaluating to see where he is."

A day after Diggs was forced to leave the win over the Colts after his knee buckled, the Texans are preparing to face the Jets on Thursday night without Diggs and leading receiver Nico Collins.

It's the latest blow to a Texans offense that has struggled to protect star quarterback C.J. Stroud. On Sunday, Stroud was sacked twice and hit nine times.

Starting guard Kenyon Green was briefly replaced in the lineup by backup Jarrett Patterson, but the switch ended when Patterson suffered a concussion.

On Monday, Ryans confirmed that Patterson remains in the NFL's concussion protocol.

Ryans added that the Texans coaches will continue to encourage Green to play up to his potential.

"A lot of people want to focus on the bad. Everybody has bad reps here and there," the Texans head coach said. "We can all focus on that, or we can look at the positive that he had some really good plays as well."

The Texans rushing attack with Joe Mixon continues to be the strength of the offense.

On Sunday, Mixon became the first player to achieve 100 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown in four of his first five games with a new team, according to the Texans.

Stroud threw for 285 yards and a touchdown despite continued pressure from the Colts defense.

Ryan praised his quarterback on Monday, saying. "C.J. was able to make a lot of really good plays and go through his progression... he is only able to do that with good protection. We had a lot of great reps from all of our guys."

For more on this story, follow Greg Bailey on Facebook, X and Instagram.