OL Martinas Rankin was a third-round pick of the Houston Texans in the 2018 NFL Draft, but his NFL career is going to be delayed a bit.

On Tuesday, it was reported that the former Mississippi State Bulldog injured his foot last month and had to undergo surgery.

Still, even with that setback, Houston coach Bill O’Brien told the Houston Chronicle that he believes Rankin will have a role with the team this fall:

“He’s doing well,” Texans coach Bill O’Brien said. “He’s a smart guy. I think he’s picked up the things we’ve taught him. He’s picked them up well and I think he has a good future here. We’ll see how it goes.”

Rankin is expected to be back by the start of the regular season, but if he misses most of training camp and the preseason, he likely won’t see much action as a rookie.

However, the important thing is that he gets healthy, as he’ll be counted on to provide depth.