HOUSTON, Texas — Thursday belongs to Tank Dell in Houston, Texas. Mayor John Whitmire has set aside Oct. 29, which is also the 27th birthday of the Texans receiver, as a citywide day in his name, a few days after Dell played in an NFL game for the first time in nearly two years.
Whitmire announced the honor on Wednesday. At the ceremony, Dell, who grew up in Daytona Beach, Fla., and starred at Mainland High School there before heading west, thanked his coaches, friends and family and said Houston has become a second home.
His return came Sunday in the overtime loss to the New York Giants. That ended a 673-day wait. Dell was injured against Kansas City late in 2024, in Week 16, dislocating his kneecap and tearing his ACL, MCL and LCL along with meniscus damage, and he sat out all of the 2025 season while he rehabbed.
In his first game back, the 5-foot-10 receiver was on the field for 14 snaps and caught one pass, good for 43 yards. Speaking to reporters this week, Dell said he felt grateful more than relieved, and that as a playmaker he believes many more big plays are still ahead.
Dell has deep local ties. He played his college ball at the University of Houston before the Texans took him in the third round of the 2023 draft. Over his first two seasons he appeared in 25 games and caught 98 passes for 1,376 yards, with 10 of them going for touchdowns.
The Texans are off this weekend. Their next game is Nov. 8 against the Los Angeles Chargers, giving Dell more time to build back up before what figures to be a bigger role down the stretch of the season.
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