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The Houston Texans are going into the 2026 season looking to take their roster from a playoff contender to a Super Bowl contender. Houston has lost in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs for three years in a row and are hoping to take that next step this year. Unfortunately, one of their more experienced veterans left the practice field on a cart today. Fans immediately reacted with “this is bad” when they heard the name. Here are the troubling details. Also Read: Criminal Charge Decision Made After Ed Oliver’s 1-Year Old Son Drowns – What We Know Texans Veteran Carted Off Practice Field, Everything We Know Braden Smith and Ali Gaye were both injured during Houston Texans’ joint practice with the Carolina Panthers on Wednesday. On two different practice fields, Smith and Gaye went down with their respective injuries at almost the same time. On field one, Smith fell to the ground, and Gaye fell on field two, and both were carted off. KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson reports that Smith and Gaye both suffered leg injuries, as they were unable to bear any weight on their legs. Despite not knowing the exact extent of either player’s injury just yet, here’s an immediate reaction both injuries: Smith is entering his first year with the Texans after entering the mix as one of the bigger additions to the roster this offseason. a Houston signed Smith from the Indianapolis Colts on a two-year, $20 million deal, and did so with the intention of filling him in as their potential new starting right tackle, who’s experienced and a strong run blocker on their new-look offensive line. But Smith has dealt with some availability issues in recent years. He has played 13 or fewer games in each season since 2023, and might now be dealing with a new injury issue that restricts his availability less than three weeks away from Week 1. If Smith is slated to miss any time, it means that veteran Trent Brown would be the most likely candidate to fill in as the Texans’ starting right tackle. Brown is the one Smith has been competing with to be the starter throughout the past few weeks, and now could have a clear path to start the year, depending on what the diagnosis is for their offseason newcomer.