Oft-Criticized Former Steelers OL Earns Start for Texans

Former Steelers center and guard Kendrick Green earned his first career start at left guard on Sunday with the Texans, who are facing the Indianapolis Colts. With the injury to starting left tackle Laremy Tunsil, starting left guard Josh Jones got pushed out there, leaving a spot open for Green to log his first career start at left guard.

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The Steelers traded Green to Houston for a sixth-round pick during the team’s final cut-down day. Houston made the deal due to several injuries across their entire offensive line. Center Juice Scruggs was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury.

In addition, two starters, Kenyon Green and Scott Quessenberry, are out for the season, according to reports. That forced the move to precipitate quickly between Houston and Pittsburgh. Green, the team’s third-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, never panned out as a center in the way the team hoped. He was the starting center throughout his rookie season in 2021 but struggled mightily in transitioning to the NFL and from guard, which he played in college, to center. He was replaced late in the year after journeyman backup J.C. Hassenauer filled in while Green was injured.

In 2022, he lost his starting job to free agent Mason Cole and moved to guard, where he remained on the roster but was rarely active on game days and did not appear in a single regular season snap. With Hassenauer moving on in free agency this spring, the Steelers moved Green back to center to try him again there, as the Steelers had built up a massive amount of depth in front of him at guard. They also used him at fullback in training camp, to some success, but Green needed to make the roster as a backup center for that project to work, and he continued to show inconsistency with his snaps.