Tank Dell already knows what he will do with the ball after his first catch on Sunday, however short it is. “I don’t care if the first catch is two yards, five yards. I’m spiking a ball,” the Houston Texans receiver said on Wednesday. “Man, it’s going to feel good.”
Dell will play against the New York Giants at home on Sunday, October 25, his first game since the knee injury he suffered against Kansas City on December 21, 2024. He tore several ligaments and dislocated his knee in that game, needed more than one operation and missed all of the 2025 season. DeMeco Ryans said on Monday that Dell will play, and on Wednesday the receiver spoke to reporters about the comeback for more than 10 minutes. The Texans posted the full session on their YouTube channel.
“I’m ready to get tackled”
Dell said he knows people are wondering how he will look the first time he is hit. “I know there’s a lot of questions like, oh, how he going to look when he get tackled. Like, I don’t care about none of that. I’m ready to get tackled,” he said. “I’m going to be joyful. Y’all are going to see the passion I have after I have that first catch.”
He said he is not overwhelmed by the moment. “First off, I’m blessed. I want to thank God for getting me back in this position, but I don’t think I’m overwhelmed,” Dell said. He called himself “anxious” after nearly two years away. His goal for Sunday is simple: “Go out there and have fun, man. First game back, I’m just trying to go out there and have fun.” He added that he is competitive and wants “a lot of plays,” but mostly he wants to “be where my feet at” and “just be who I am.”
“I never doubted”
Asked about the doubt that followed the injury in Kansas City, Dell pointed to a social media post he made a couple of days after it happened. “I was just like, I’m going to be back,” he said. “So in my mind, it was never like, am I going to be back?” He said he went through moments of caution during the rehab, “but you’ve got to have faith in God. I never doubted that I was going to work myself back to be able to come on the field.”
He said he was in the team facility nearly every day through the year and the offseason. “Even the days when I woke up and I didn’t feel like doing anything, I still gave it my all and came in here and did everything,” he said. He started with Dr. Walter Lowe, who did his surgeries. “He did an awesome job on my surgeries, and that was the stepping stone,” Dell said.
The process, he said, changed him. He called it “a life-altering process” that “just made me live in the moment and be grateful for everything.” “Even though it was a crazy, traumatic accident, but there’s people out here who’s going through things way worse than me. I got injured in a football game, but there’s somebody who’s fighting for their life, for real.” He said he started to feel fully like himself about a month ago.
Dell thanked Ryans for the way he handled the long recovery. “DeMeco was calling me during the offseason, like, take as much time as you need. When you’re ready, we ready,” he said. “He made me not stress.” He also thanked his receivers coach, the training staff and two people outside the building: his personal physical therapist, Ken, who he said came to his house to work with him for free, and a friend who kept his gym open whenever Dell needed it.
A different receiver room
Dell returns to a much deeper group than the one he left. Houston traded for Marvin Harrison Jr. before the London game, and Nico Collins, Kayshon Boutte, Xavier Hutchinson and Jaylin Noel are also in the room. When a reporter asked about the receiver room he was “joining,” Dell joked, “I’m not joining,” before saying he understood the question.
“If I see Nico make a play, in a not selfish way, I want to go out there and make a play, and I’m going to be happy for him,” Dell said. “The cream going to rise to the top. When there’s blessings in the neighborhood, then you’ll get blessed.” He said he is studying every receiver position and learning the whole of Nick Caley’s offense so that he leaves no margin for error.
Dell, who grew up in Florida and played college football at the University of Houston, also had to buy “a lot of extra tickets” for Sunday. His grandmother had been calling for two weeks to make sure her flight and ticket were booked. “I feel like I’m a Florida boy, but … this is home for me, too,” he said. “I know it’s going to be a great feeling when I run out the tunnel.”
Will Anderson Jr.: “I’ve been hugging Tank all day”
Across the locker room, Will Anderson Jr. said he did not leave Dell’s side on Wednesday. “I’ve been hugging Tank all day. I haven’t left his side all day,” the defensive end said. “I was telling him, every time I see him today, I’m so proud of you, man. The work that you continue to put in through these last two years, showing up, being consistent. I know it was hard. I know you didn’t feel your best.”
Anderson said Dell kept bringing good energy into the building while he was out. “He’s continued to come in the building, have great energy, love on the guys, love on the receivers, keep being there and not be an energy vampire,” he said. “When Tank is out there, it’s different. You feel the explosive, you feel the big plays coming, you feel he’s going to break somebody’s ankles out there.” He added that C.J. Stroud “is going to enjoy having him back because they’re really close.” His advice for Sunday: “Let loose, be free and know that it’s just ball. Everything that you’ve been working for, everything that you’ve been waiting for, now is the moment to go unleash it.”
Before the injury, Dell, a third-round pick in 2023, had 98 catches for 1,376 yards and 10 touchdowns in 25 games. The 2-4 Texans come off a 34-31 win over Jacksonville at Wembley, and Stroud was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for that game. Kickoff against the Giants is 1 p.m. ET on Sunday (8 p.m. in Cairo).
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