The Texans had five players who had to sit out practice Thursday with injuries, but only one is definitely out when Houston travels to take on the Titans on Sunday.

OLB Brooks Reed (groin), CB Johnathan Joseph (hamstring), ILB Bradie James (hamstring), RG Antoine Caldwell (hamstring), and RT Derek Newton (knee) all did not practice Thursday. Only Reed is definitely out this weekend.

Joseph missed last week’s game at Detroit after tweaking his hamstring against Jacksonville on Nov. 18. He worked out with trainers on Wednesday, but the medical staff decided to give him a day off. He will be evaluated again Friday and has a chance to play Sunday.

“The trainers just told me they pushed him hard [Wednesday],” coach Gary Kubiak said. “If we’re going to ask him to possibly practice [Friday], they thought a day off would do him some good, so we just kept him out today.”

James, Caldwell, and Newton all suffered their injuries on Thanksgiving against the Lions. They are not as far along in their recovery as Joseph, but Kubiak will see how they respond to treatment.

“Well, the fact that they haven’t done anything the last two days would concern me a little bit,” Kubiak said. “We still got some time on our hands with these guys.”

DE J.J. Watt returned to practice Thursday after being sent home on Wednesday with an illness.

“I don’t know that he’s feeling 100 percent but he did practice full time and should be okay,” Kubiak said.

Quick Hits

  • WR Andre Johnson was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Month after his 614 receiving yards in November. “I just try to go out and do whatever I need to do to help this team win,” Johnson said. “Over the past month or whatever, it’s required me to do more than I did at the beginning of this season.”
  • If James cannot go Sunday, LB Darryl Sharpton will be the one who has to make the calls on defense. Sharpton will be playing his third game after being activated from the PUP list. “I’m ready,” Sharpton said. “They’ve been preparing me, and every week, I’ve been having more and more responsibility.”

Follow Texans blogger Sean Bielawski on Twitter, @CBSTexans.