Texans wide receiver John Metchie III, defensive end Denico Autry return to practice

HOUSTON – Texans wide receiver John Metchie III returned to practice after missing one day with a minor shoulder injury.

Metchie is expected to play in a wild-card round playoff game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday at NRG Stadium.

Veteran defensive end Denico Autry, who was held out of the regular-season finale against the Tennessee Titans with a lingering knee injury, also returned to practice and is on track to play Saturday.

Star defensive end Will Anderson Jr. and starting linebacker Christian Harris practiced the past two days after being held out of the regular-season finale against the Titans as a precautionary measure with hand and ankle injuries, respectively.

And starting defensive tackle Foley Fatukasi has returned to practice after being out the entire month of December with an ankle injury.

Having Fatukasi back gives the Texans’ defense and experienced and big run-stopping presence in the middle. He was limited in practice, but is expected to play Saturday barring an unexpected setback.

“Yeah, we feel pretty healthy,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “Foley, getting him back will be big for us. He has done a really good job at helping us with our run defense. So, getting him back will be huge. Overall, at this point of the season to be here health wise I think we are in a really good spot so we have to stay that way.”

Texans cornerback Jeff Okudah returned to practice Wednesday from a concussion that kept him out against Tennessee. He was limited and is close to clearing the NFL concussion protocol.

Tight end Teagan Quitoriano was designated for return from injured reserve, launching his 21-day practice window to be activated from a strained calf. He participated fully.

Offensive guard Shaq Mason remains sidelined with a Grade 2 sprained medial collateral ligament, per league sources, and is out for three to four weeks, meaning his season may be over. Backup linebacker Jake Hansen is still recovering from an ankle injury that has sidelined him since the Titans game.

Anderson participated fully along with offensive guard Nick Broeker with hand injuries and cornerback D’Angelo Ross with a shoulder injury.

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Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.