Cecil Shorts III has been ruled out for Thursday night's game against Indianapolis, according to head coach Bill O'Brien. Shorts suffered a shoulder injury on the final play of Sunday's 48-21 loss in Atlanta.
"It's football, you know what I mean," Shorts said Monday. "Of course you don't want to get hurt in any part of the game, but the last play, but it is what it is. Just got to move on and get back as fast as I can."
Shorts returned four punts for 40 yards and had his third consecutive game with six receptions for a season-high 87 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons.
Nate Washington is day-to-day with a hamstring injury, after exiting in the second quarter against the Falcons. With possibly two receivers on the mend during a short week, the Texans haven't ruled out the possibility of making any roster moves.
"I think we're in the process of discussing some things," O'Brien said. "We haven't made any moves yet. I really haven't seen Rick (Smith) too much today. I've just been in coaching meetings and things like that."
If the Texans don't add any receivers before Thursday's game, O'Brien is confident in the rookie class of receivers to step up in Shorts and Washington's spots.
"I'm sure we'll reconvene later on here today, but right now, you got Hop (DeAndre Hopkins), you have (Keith) Mumphery, (Jaelen) Strong, and (Chandler) Worthy," O'Brien said. "Those are the guys that you have right now. Hop's been out there a lot obviously, but Mumphery really had some good catches yesterday and played hard. Strong's getting better. He had a good week of practice last week. Worthy same thing. Young players that we think are getting better."
The (1-3) Texans host the (2-2) Colts on Thursday night with kickoff scheduled for 7:25 p.m. CT.
