Texans Replace Jayden Higgins With Two Receivers Who Have Seen Better Days

The Houston Texans just lost a promising young receiver to a torn ACL, so naturally, they went out and signed two guys whose medical charts read like a CVS receipt. Sterling Shepard and Zay Jones are officially heading to Houston.

The move comes right after Jayden Higgins wrecked his knee in a joint practice with the Las Vegas Raiders, ending his 2026 season before it even started. Higgins was supposed to be a serious piece of this offense after putting up 525 yards and six touchdowns last year. Now, C.J. Stroud is going to be throwing passes to a pair of thirty-somethings trying to squeeze one last drop out of the sponge.

"Mike Garafolo reported that both Shepard and Jones impressed in a workout today."

Shepard is 33 years old and managed to scrape together 39 catches for 371 yards with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season. He is a great locker room guy, which is NFL code for a player who will definitely help you win the coin toss but might not separate from a linebacker in man coverage.

Then you have Jones, who is 31 and coming off a torn Achilles he suffered just last November with the Arizona Cardinals. He caught exactly 12 passes for 183 yards in 2025 before his leg gave out. Signing a receiver less than a year removed from an Achilles tear to replace a guy who just tore his ACL is the kind of roster math that makes you question if the front office is using a calculator or a Magic 8 Ball.

For anyone looking at Houston's futures or Stroud's passing props, this is a clear signal that the depth chart is officially in scramble mode. You do not bring in two aging veterans off the street in late August unless the internal panic meter is flashing red.

The Texans are throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks before Week 1. Shepard and Jones both apparently looked good in their workouts, but looking good in shorts on a Thursday is a lot different than getting open on a Sunday. We will see who actually makes the final cut, but right now, Houston is just hoping one of these guys still has functioning shock absorbers.