Taking a look at how Houston Texans rookie defensive end Sabastian Harsh was able to make the 53-man roster.
The Houston Texans at this point have now assembled their 53-man roster, and that now includes undrafted rookie defensive end Sabastain Harsh.
Before camp started, Harsh's chance to make the team was not very likely, but after working extremely hard and making plays throughout the preseason Harsh was able to get on the Texans 53-man roster and is set to begin the 2026 regular season as an active NFL player.
When Harsh was waiting to find out whether or not he made the roster, he was quite anxious and actually provided some explanation of that moment in his appearance on the Texans radio on Saturday.
"I talked to my mom, and my dad and I was just kind of waiting for a phone call, and yeah, they didn't call me. Then I seen the I seen the roster get released, and I was like, Oh my gosh. Like, that is pretty cool, man," Harsh said.
Hearing Harsh's reaction to making the roster is so amazing because it is very clear how hard he worked to be able to make that a reality, and the fact that now he gets to share that moment with his family is absolutely incredible.
Later on in Harsh's appearance on Texans radio, he talked about the fact that he was injured and missed the first preseason game, which did put him in a tough spot, as it was going to require him to play very well and take advantage of every rep moving forward. However, by making the team, it is clear that Harsh did exactly that.
On that note, Harsh had an incredible performance against the Carolina Panthers in the second preseason game which definitely put him in a good spot heading into the final week of the preseason.
In that game against the Panther, Harsh tallied three tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, two quarterback hits, and one pass breakup. With a performance like this, Harsh proved that he could not only perform in the NFL but that he has the ability to be disruptive as a pass rusher and as a run defender.
To be a successful defensive lineman in the NFL it is critical to be able to defend the run just as much as get after the quarterback, so that does seem to be at least part of the reason why head coach DeMeco Ryans selected Harsh to make the 53-man roster.
Even with the incredible accomplishment of making the final roster, Harsh does believe there is a lot more work that has to be done. "Even still now, like, I haven't done it yet. So, still got a lot more work to do," Harsh said.
As Harsh indicated, he believes there is still plenty of work that needs to be done, but the good news is that he is now on the 53-man roster and has two great mentors on the defensive line in edge rushers Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter.
Heading into the regular season, it's going to be very interesting to watch Harsh and see the kind of impact he can make on this Texans defense throughout the 2026 season.
