The Houston Texans are headed towards their season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars without starting left tackle Duane Brown.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday that Brown has not shown up at the team facility and is expected to be out at least Week 1, according to a source informed of the situation.
Brown has been holding out since the spring in hopes of getting a new contract. Skipping offseason workouts triggered a de-escalator clause in his contract cutting his salary for 2017 from $9.65 million to $9.4 million. He's slated to make $9.75 million in 2018.
The 32-year-old was in Houston this weekend helping with Hurricane Harvey relief and told reporters he is "definitely" playing football in 2017.
"I'm not getting into that too much, but I'm definitely playing football this year," Brown said, per FOX 26 in Houston. "It's tough, man. It's my craft, something I love to do. Those are my brothers. So it's tough. But like I said I'm not going to get into it too much. We'll see what happens."
Brown did not indicate when he planned to report.
With Brown holding out, the Texanswill face Jacksonville on Sunday with veteran Chris Clark manning Tom Savage's blind side.
