Texans’ J. J. Watt missed Friday’s practice after tweaking his knee

Dec 22, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) celebrates a sack against the Denver Broncos during the second half at Reliant Stadium. The Broncos won 37-13. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Campbell-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 22, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) celebrates a sack against the Denver Broncos during the second half at Reliant Stadium. The Broncos won 37-13. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Campbell-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Houston Texans are in a transitional period with Bill O’Brien taking over as head coach this offseason. As they sort out the situation with wide receiver Andre Johnson, who has skipped every OTA this offseason, and sort out the quarterback situation, they don’t need anything else on the first-year NFL head coach’s plate.

More from Houston Texans

They got dealt another stroke of bad luck with defensive end J.J. Watt, who is dealing with a hyperextended knee. Watt tweaked his knee during practice on Thursday but O’Brien downplayed it and suggesting it was minor and not a concern.

“J.J. yesterday in practice just had a little hyperextension on his knee,” O’Brien said on Friday, via the team’s website. “He is fine. It’s not serious at all. We just gave him the day off today.”

Watt, the Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2012, is definitely going to be a big part of Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel’s defense in 2014. Crennel had nothing but praise for Watt.

“He’s pretty good, I believe,” Crennel said, via ToroTimes.com. “That is one of the things that I’ve noticed about him. He’s a pleasure to work with because he gives you everything he’s got all of the time. From a coaching standpoint, that is what you want from a player. You want the player to give you everything he has. We tell the guys to do your best and then you let the chips fall where they may. His best is pretty good.”