Tank Dell’s injury on Saturday has officially ended the Houston Texans wide receiver’s season.

The Texans placed Dell and starting safety Jimmie Ward on injured reserve on Monday.

Dell suffered a dislocated kneecap along with a torn ACL and additional damage during the third quarter of the Texans’ game against the Kansas City Chiefs. He caught a touchdown pass from quarterback C.J. Stroud before colliding with teammate Jared Wayne as he fell.

The young receiver immediately grabbed his knee and received on-field medical care. He was eventually carried off the field on a stretcher and taken to a Kansas City hospital for further assessment.

This injury adds to a challenging year for the young player, who previously broke his fibula in a Week 13 game last December and faced minor injuries during a shooting incident in Florida last April.

What occurred during Tank Dell’s injury?

Dell sustained the injury while catching a touchdown pass from Stroud in the third quarter of the Texans’ Week 16 loss to the Chiefs.

Even while injured, Dell managed to secure the ball for the touchdown. Post-play, he immediately clutched his knee and received urgent care on the field.

He spent the day in a local hospital in Kansas City before being released and returning to Houston on Sunday.

Latest update on Tank Dell’s injury

On Monday, Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans confirmed that Dell had dislocated his kneecap and torn his ACL. He will be undergoing surgery and is officially sidelined for the rest of the season.

Dell was discharged from the Kansas City hospital and returned to Houston the following day.

“Currently, we are still evaluating his situation,” Ryans stated on Sunday. “He’s consulting with doctors to outline the next steps.”

Dell shared a video on TikTok later on Sunday featuring clips of himself, with a voiceover of a Stephen A. Smith interview with Kobe Bryant from 2006.

In the TikTok video, Bryant’s voice conveys, “Let it go. It is what it is. Place it in God’s hands, and He will carry you. God is great.”

“God is great. It’s that simple, my friend… You might think you know all you want, but until you have to carry that cross you can’t bear, you realize He picks it up for you and carries both you and the cross. That’s when you truly understand.”

Dell captioned the post, “When you want something so desperately, you develop a unique bond with it… #NosurrenderNoretreat.”

What does this mean for Tank Dell’s recovery?

On Monday, Ryans informed the media that Dell’s dislocated kneecap comes with an accompanying ACL tear.

Dell is set to have surgery to mend his injured knee and will miss the remainder of the Texans’ season. Additionally, this setback raises concerns about the start of the 2025 season for him, as noted by Rapoport.

This marks the second consecutive year Dell has faced a season-ending injury. He fractured his fibula during a Week 13 game last year, which sidelined him for the rest of his rookie season.

On Sunday, the second-year head coach wasn’t ready to confirm whether Dell’s injury would be season-ending.

“We don’t know yet – we’re still assessing his condition,” Ryans replied. “He still needs to consult with doctors and go through the necessary evaluations.”

After further assessments and scans, it became evident by Monday that Dell would require surgery and would be unable to continue playing this season.

(This article has been updated with new information.)