Inside Texans running back Marlon Mack’s recovery from an Achilles tear

Losing the ability to walk was agonizing for the running back who knew how to fly.

The initial month of Marlon Mack’s recovery from his Achilles tear is still a vivid memory. So is the pain that bolted into his right ankle after he pivoted on a quick hitch route in the 2020 season opener. So is the compounded frustration of a season-ending injury in a contract year, a harmful happenstance that sidelined the 6-foot, 210-pound speedster long enough that Indianapolis found his replacement by the time he returned.

The newly signed Texans running back wishes he’d had more opportunities last season to answer the health questions that still linger. Mack, 26, wanted to showcase the self-discovery his first major injury revealed. But the lesson — enjoy life, the good and the bad — supplied the strength to keep his being sidelined while watching his successor, Jonathan Taylor, blossom into an All-Pro from destroying his energy, killing his joy.

“You get over it,” Mack said after Tuesday’s offseason workout. “For the love of the game, you find a way to get through it.”

Now, Mack has a chance to reclaim his role as the feature back for a rebuilding franchise that desperately needs one. The Texans averaged their second-fewest yards per carry in history (3.4) within a dismal run-oriented 2021 scheme in which 31-year-old veteran Rex Burkhead, who started in just five games, was the team’s leading rusher with 427 yards and three touchdowns.

Mack was the highest-profile addition within general manager Nick Caserio’s offseason overhaul of Houston’s backfield. The franchise moved on from Mark Ingram (midseason trade), Phillip Lindsay (cut) and David Johnson (expired contract), and Mack’s one-year, $2 million signing relieved the Texans from overreaching for a running back during the NFL draft.

Still, Caserio bolstered depth at the position by spending a fourth-round pick on Florida running back Dameon Pierce, a 5-10, 218-pound bruiser whose 13 rushing touchdowns in 2021 exceeded Houston’s total last season (eight). Mack, Burkhead, Pierce and free agent signee Dare Ogunbowale, who totaled 282 yards in two seasons with the Jaguars, are expected to be the core of Houston’s running back room this upcoming season.

“We were trying to upgrade all the positions, but running back was one that we thought there were some players out there that fit what we wanted to do,” coach Lovie Smith said. “And (with) Marlon — I’m going to say that about all our running backs, even with our rookie — we have depth at the running back position.”

The run game remains a central pillar within newly promoted offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton’s scheme. Smith said Tuesday “odds are” the Texans will have a fullback on their active roster in 2022, which further indicates Houston’s commitment to the run. Snaps will inherently be split among the running backs, but whether Mack has indeed returned to full strength in his recovery could largely impact how efficient the unit will be.

Mack said he’s “feeling better than ever,” and he burst past Texans defenders along the sidelines on two separate plays during Tuesday’s workouts. Speed has long been Mack’s ally. Indy’s 2017 fourth-round pick out of South Florida learned as a rookie from veteran Frank Gore how to be a patient runner between the tackles, how turning on the jets too quickly can cause the defense to suddenly shift, closing the running lanes too soon.

Patience can mean waiting an extra millisecond, an extra step that allows blockers to seal their defenders and for a hole to emerge. Then Mack can dash, like he did on a 63-yard touchdown run against the Chargers in the 2019 season opener.

Mack averaged 4.5 yards per carry as Indy’s primary back in 2018 and 2019, when he totaled 1,999 yards and 17 rushing touchdowns. But Taylor’s productivity in Mack’s absence was too promising for the Colts, yielding a 2021 season in which Taylor led the NFL with 1,811 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.

By the third game of the season, it was clear to Mack he’d been relegated behind Taylor and backup Nyheim Hines. Mack requested a trade, a decision the Colts supported. The franchise explored options but ultimately found no trade partner. So Mack waited out a season in which he recorded 28 carries for 101 yards, the fewest attempts in his career.

Mack said he felt “fully back” from his injury last season. He’d spent the initial month of his recovery laid up after the surgery. Then he was back to walking. But it was a limping walk, a gait that didn’t trust in the repaired Achilles. Regaining trust in the ligament was the major key, Mack said. He had to quiet the voice in his head that questioned, “Can I trust it and do all this? Can I make the cut that I used to do?”

“Once you get over that fear of planting, getting that adrenaline pumping again, I think (those thoughts) go out the window,” Mack said, “and that’s when you really get that Achilles back and that trust back in yourself.”

Mack is attempting a comeback that isn’t often completed by NFL running backs. In recent history, those who rupture their Achilles at the position don’t regularly maintain their previous productivity. Former All-Pro Texans running back Arian Foster suffered the injury in 2015 and exited the league a year later. D’Onta Foreman, Houston’s 2017 third-round pick, is the success story. He spent a season away from football after injuring his Achilles in 2018, signed with the Titans, then rushed for 566 yards and three touchdowns last season.

Mack will also have his moment, and he’s sporting a No. 2 jersey that resembles his rebirth. He wore the number at Booker High in Sarasota, Fla., changed to No. 5 at South Florida, then combined them into No. 25 while playing for Indy. Now, it’s “back to the basics,” a restart aimed to satisfy the questions that have been swirling for nearly two years.

“There’s always going to be questions, man,” Mack said. “Especially since I didn’t play much last year. I’ve just got to go out there, prove everybody wrong, do what I do. Don’t try to do too much. Let the play come to me, be instinctive, and everything’s going to show for itself.”