Losing OLG Chester Pitts to a season-ending knee injury is a blow to the Texans' offensive line, but the way we hear it, the team is confident in his replacement, Kasey Studdard. Studdard, a third-year player from Texas, played sparingly in his first two seasons in Houston, never starting a game, but we’re told he has made a good impression on the coaching staff, and the sense is he will be an effective starter. Though not as athletic as Pitts, the 6-3, 302-pound Studdard is strong and tenacious. “Kasey plays the game on emotion and effort — (he’s) a very hard player,” Texans head coach Gary Kubiak said of Studdard, a sixth-round pick in 2007. “He’ll make some mistakes because he is so aggressive. He’s going to have a few in there, but he fits with the group.” Added Kubiak, “He’s earned the right to play through camp.” Pitts had made 114 consecutive starts before suffering the injury Week Two at Tennessee.

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