The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the Houston Texans on the road in Week Four and as things stand right now, former draft pick Kendrick Green, will be starting on the offensive line for their opponent.
Green, who was originally selected in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Steelers out of Illinois, was traded to the Texans ahead of the final offseason roster cuts being made around the NFL. Since arriving in Houston, Green has started the last two games for the Texans at left guard and has played 140 offensive snaps in total.
According to Pro Football Focus, Green has allowed three total pressures in the two games that he has played at left guard for the Texans. He has not allowed a sack and PFF has given him an overall blocking grade 55.3 through Week Three. His pass blocking grade (64.5) is higher than his run blocking grade (54.6), according to PFF.
During his Tuesday press conference, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was asked if he had watched any of Green in his first two starts as a member of the Texans.
“I really hadn’t looked at him individually in that way, man,” Tomlin said, according to Steelers.com. “I’m trying to absorb their collective personality and what they’re trying to get done. And so, I’m not prepared to give you an accurate answer there.”
Should Green indeed wind up starting again for the Texans on Sunday, it will be interesting to watch him play against members of his former team. Specifically, it will be interesting to see Green go up against Steelers rookie DT Keeanu Benton, one of the team’s two second round draft picks this year. Benton has played well so far in the Steelers first three games of the 2023 season and he even recorded his first career NFL sack this past Sunday night against the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Steelers unfortunately won’t have veteran tackle Cameron Heyward again in Week Four as he remains sidelined with a core muscle injury that he sustained during the regular season opener. Heyward is currently on the Steelers Reserve/Injured list and the assumption is that he’ll miss at least seven games in total.
While the Steelers enter Week Four with a league-best 13 sacks, only three of them have been registered by defensive linemen as DT Larry Ogunjobi and DE DeMarvin Leal have one apiece along with Benton.
As for Green ahead of the Sunday game in Houston, he did not play a single snap in 2022 after being the Steelers starting center for most of his 2021 rookie season. The Steelers traded him to the Texans in late August for a 2025 sixth-round selection.
