The Houston Texans wrapped up their joint practice against the Las Vegas Raiders on Tuesday , where the Texans were able to get a brief look at another team other than themselves in a practice setting before the season, and a couple of days ahead of their preseason games later this week.
And it was in that Texans joint practice where one player on Houston's offensive line wound up playing particularly well: third-year offensive tackle Blake Fisher.
The Texans were bound to be faced with a tough challenge in the trenches against the Raiders in the form of five-time Pro Bowler Maxx Crosby, one of the best edge rushers in the NFL who poses an immediate threat off the edge to any lineman blocking on the opposing side.
Yet, it was in Tuesday's practice where the Texans rolled out Fisher as their first-team right tackle--a role that he hasn't often been in throughout training camp thus far, but one that he performed rather well in against one of the tougher one-on-one matchups the league has to offer in Crosby.
Oftentimes, the Texans have been rolling out either Braden Smith, their free agent signing from earlier this offseason , or Trent Brown, their veteran tackle who started half of the 2025 season on the right side, as the ones getting first-team reps this training camp.
On Tuesday, it was Fisher who rotated in to get those opportunities, and he made the most of them in a tough assignment.
Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans gave some credit to Fisher, along with all of the team's offensive linemen, for the way he attacked Tuesday's practice and the task of facing Crosby after the day was over.
"Blake [Fisher] did a nice job today," Ryans said. "Crosby, a really great player, gave us some some tough looks. The thing about Crosby, is he stays after it. He not just gonna, you know, go one rush and just stop. He has great effort."
"He plays a great effort, so you have to strain, you have to finish at the tackle position, and our tackles did a good job today."
Any practice performance like Fisher has in his current situation is massive as it relates to his chances to make it past the 53-man cut, because there's a chance he's not exactly a lock to be on the roster come Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills.
Fisher is right in the Texans' tackle room with starting left tackle Aireontae Ersery as well as Braden Smith and Trent Brown competing to be the starter on the right side , slotting in the 2024 second-round pick as the most likely bet to fill in as OT4 on the depth chart.
Jun 9, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans offensive tackle Blake Fisher arrives for the team's minicamp at Houston Methodist Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
And depending on how Houston's roster is slimmed down, Smith could have a chance at being a cutdown day casualty by the end of the month. The Texans might just go into the season rostering three tackles with Ersery, Smith, and Brown, and leave Fisher as the odd man out.
So good days like Tuesday's practice against the Raiders might just be what can boost Fisher's stock to be one of the final players let into the Texans' roster to, if anything, be a rotational tackle upfront like he was throughout last season.
On Thursday, Fisher will be able to get more reps in Houston's preseason game against Las Vegas . That presents an even better opportunity to build upon his practice from earlier in the week and add even more hype to his stock heading into the season, depending on how many snaps he receives and converts on.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/texans/onsi as One Texans Player Boosted His Stock in Raiders Joint Practice .
