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Ray Graham makes NFL debut with Houston Texans in finale

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

The Houston Texans have been, well, pretty bad this year. But hey, when your quarterback gets injured and is subpar and your starting running back, and one of the best players on your team, is out for half the season, these things tend to happen.

The Texans entered Sunday's game with the Tennessee Titans at 2-13 and did what they do best - lose. One bright spot for Pitt fans was that former running back Ray Graham got into the game.

Graham, a rookie this year, has spent almost all of his time on the bench. But with the injuries to Arian Foster, Ben Tate, and Dennis Johnson, Graham made his debut playing behind Jonathan Grimes.

Graham didn't have a break out game, but he did play for the first time this season, registering eight yards on four carries. He also had a catch for a 12-yard gain and was targeted a couple of other times.

I'm not sure how much of a future he has in Houston. He was essentially the fifth(?) back for them this year and it took a slew of injuries for him to even get a minor role. Graham hadn't even been in on special teams or for any other circumstances this year and it was his first time playing. Contracts in the NFL mean next to nothing, but FWIW, Grimes and Tate will be free agents next season according to this site, and Tate, the primary backup to Foster, doesn't anticipate being back next year. Even still, my guess is the Texans bring in someone with the question marks about Foster and maybe a second back if they don't re-sign Tate.

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