Texans inside linebacker Darryl Sharpton is not yet ready to come off the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.
Players on the PUP list have to sit out their team's first six games. They can begin practicing this week. Sharpton is still on the mend after suffering a season-ending quadriceps injury last year in Week 8.
"He's not ready," Texans coach Gary Kubiak said Thursday. "He's very close. He's working with our trainers and running very, very well, but he is not ready to go on the field with the rest of the players yet. I don't know… We'll see where we're at in a couple weeks here."
Sharpton has three weeks to get healthy enough to return to practice. From the day he begins practicing, the Texans would have an additional three weeks to decide whether to add Sharpton to the 53-man roster. If either of those deadlines passes, Sharpton will not be able to play this season.
The Texans could especially use Sharpton with inside linebacker Brian Cushing on injured reserve. A fourth-round draft pick out of Miami (Fla.) in 2010, Sharpton could have competed for a starting job with Bradie James this offseason if healthy. He was close to returning when he suffered a setback in his rehab on the second day of training camp, causing a hip issue that landed him on PUP.
Kubiak said Thursday that he does not know if inside linebacker Barrett Ruud, who took Cushing's spot on the roster last week, will be ready to play against the Baltimore Ravens. Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said Ruud, an eighth-year veteran, has caught on quickly and is already working as the signal-caller for the defense in practice.
"He's doing good," Kubiak said. "I think we'll have to make a decision here at the end of the week whether we think he's ready to go there and help us. Wade and (linebackers coach) Reggie (Herring) have been pleased with his progress in learning our defense. I think he's going to be able to help us. Whether it starts this week or not, I don't know."
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