Rookie linebacker Darryl Sharpton will miss the season finale with a shoulder injury, Texans coach Gary Kubiak announced on Monday.
Sharpton suffered a shoulder subluxation, a partial dislocation in which the shoulder slips slightly out of its socket, against the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
"He subluxed his shoulder and could possibly be facing surgery, and he played the whole dang game with it, so that'll tell you what kind of guy he is," Kubiak said. "We knew about it at halftime. He refused to come out; played the whole second half with it."
A fourth-round draft pick from Miami (Fla.), Sharpton made his first-career start at middle linebacker at Denver. He had five tackles, including a four-yard tackle for loss in the third quarter. Sharpton started the previous five games on the weakside, earning praise from Kubiak for his impressive play.
"He struggled a little bit (on Sunday), but it sure as heck wasn't effort," Kubiak said. "We wanted to put a little more on his plate, put him at MIKE – let him run the defense, so to speak. So from that standpoint, he had some mistakes that took him back a little bit, but nothing do with effort. He was exceptional in his effort in the game."
Rookie cornerback Sherrick McManis is also likely to miss the Jacksonville game after suffering a hamstring injury against the Broncos. Kubiak listed defensive tackle Shaun Cody (general soreness) and rookie defensive tackle Earl Mitchell (ankle) as the Texans' other injury concerns.
Kubiak did not rule out the possibility that All-Pro wide receiver Andre Johnson could play in Week 17. Johnson was inactive at Denver with a high-ankle sprain that has regressed in recent weeks.
"I hope he taps me on the shoulder and says he's ready to go," Kubiak said. "He won't practice. He will not practice Wednesday, Thursday. If he tells me Friday he feels good enough to play, then he's going to play.
"He was not ready to go (Sunday). It's kind of been every week, we get to Friday or Saturday and he says, 'I'll be fine. I'll take a shot and I'll go.' You could tell this week it wasn't the same, so I'll have to wait and see how it goes."
