HOUSTON — The Houston Texans will be without one of their top stars for the rest of the season. On Tuesday, the team announced receiver Stefon Diggs suffered a torn ACL.
Diggs, 30, suffered went down with what appeared to be a non-contact injury near the end of the third quarter of Houston's 23-20 win over Indianapolis Sunday and stayed down on the turf. During the CBS Sports broadcast, Diggs was seen going into the locker room to be evaluated and didn't return.
On Monday, after the game, head coach DeMeco Ryans was asked about Diggs' injury.
"He's still being evaluated for a knee, so we'll find out further information as the week goes on," he said.
However, on Tuesday, Ryans confirmed the severity of the injury.
"I hope he's okay," quarterback CJ Stroud said in his postgame news conference. "I don't know what's going on yet, but I'm praying for him."
In his first year since coming to Houston in a blockbuster trade with Buffalo, Diggs has 47 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns in eight games.
Diggs is a four-time Pro Bowler who has had at least 1,000 yards receiving in each of the past six seasons, highlighted by his 2020 season where he led the NFL with a career-high 1,535 yards.
With receiver Nico Collins on the injured list, losing Diggs is a big blow when it comes to weapons for quarterback CJ Stroud to throw to.
Fortunately for Houston, veteran Robert Woods is back from injury and Tank Dell has stayed healthy so far this year. The team will also need more help from receivers Xavier Hutchinson and John Metchie.
"I thought out [WR John Metchie III] ‘Metch’ and [WR Xavier Hutchinson] ‘Hutch’ did a great job trying to step up to the plate and play really well just like Stef was," Stroud said.
The Texans will not have much time to get healthy by having to play on a short week against the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football.