Darren Fells

Jordan Akins: By NFL standards, the 28-year-old Akins, a former pro baseball player, isn’t that young, but he is entering just his third pro season and has been a productive red-zone target during practices. Whether he keeps this up will be important, as Darren Fells seems due for some regression after a season in which he caught seven touchdowns, more than doubling his previous season high.

Akins saw 140 snaps out of the slot last season, and though Cobb will absorb most of DeAndre Hopkins’ workload from that spot, Akins could experience an uptick in usage here, too, if his practice production carries over to games.

There are reasons to believe Akins may make a leap in his third year. He led all Houston tight ends in routes run (390) and ran the 10th most routes among all tight ends last year. Given his snap rate (61%), it’s an indicator that the team views him mainly as a receiver. He was fourth among tight ends in yards after the catch per reception and third among tight ends in average YAC above expectations, per NFL’s Next Gen Stats. With the loss of DeAndre Hopkins, Akins should play a larger role in the passing game, especially with Darren Fells another year older. Akins could see competition from second-year player Kahale Warring, but after a lost-rookie season it’s doubtful that he’ll be able to eat into Akins’ snaps.