The Texans practiced without six members of the 53-man roster on Wednesday, but linebacker Brian Cushing wasn’t on that list.
Cushing was listed as limited with back and ankle injuries, although it sounds like the back issue is the more significant of the two problems. Cushing shared the extent of the injury on Wednesday while discussing “the physicality of the sport.”
“There’s two fractures in my back, but those are things you have to push through,” Cushing said, via the Houston Chronicle. “Obviously, it’s painful, and I’m not able to get as many reps as I want in practice right now, but I’ll be out there Sunday with my team. I want the guys to know they can count on me, and that means the world to me. I’ve missed a number of games with season-ending injuries, and I don’t want to miss any more time, so as long as I can walk, I’ll be out there.”
The Texans have lost defensive end J.J. Watt and cornerback Kevin Johnson for the season and had defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and cornerback Johnathan Joseph out of practice on Wednesday with injuries that could sideline them for Sunday’s game against the Colts. That doesn’t make them unique in the NFL, but it does sap the strongest part of the team and makes the presence of Cushing and the rest of their front-line defenders significant as they try to take the AFC South crown.