If he's fully recovered, he could be a nice addition at the receiver position. http://www.houstontexans.com/news/index.cfm?page_type=sub&cont_id=103416 Trio visits Texans March 27, 2002 By Katie Lewis HoustonTexans.com Off season workouts kicked off Monday with the entire 68-man roster in attendance, but the team is not yet complete. The club hosted three free agents Wednesday, including Indianapolis wide receiver Jerome Pathon, Chicago offensive tackle Jimmy Herndon and Buffalo linebacker John Holecek. Pathon spent four seasons with the Colts, enjoying his best campaign in 2000 with 50 receptions for 646 receiving yards with three touchdowns. Last year, Pathon started with 25 catches and two touchdowns in just three games before he suffered an injury against New England that kept him out for the remainder of the year. Pathon said he's healthy and ready to return full-force. "I've got a lot of good vertical push and make good play-action catches," Pathon said. "With the combination of myself, Jermaine Lewis and Cory Bradford, it may be good with the three of us together." Also making the trip to Houston was Bears' tackle Herndon, who is a native of Austin, Tex. and former Baytown High School graduate. Herndon played in 16 games last year and served as a cog on special teams. He spent his first NFL season in 1996 at Jacksonville in a reserve role behind Texans' Tony Boselli, who was acquired from the Jaguars as the first pick in the 2002 Expansion Draft. Playing in Houston would mean returning to a familiar territory of family and former teammates. "I knew I was going to be a free agent this year and I think my mother-in-law started praying for it as soon as the Texans came into the league, especially because we've got three kids," Herndon said. "I grew up in Austin so we'd love to be here." Herndon is also well-acquainted to the idea of building a team into a winning squad. He was just part of the Chicago Bears playoff run. "This will be very much the same as turning the team around in Chicago," Herndon said. "Going from 5-11 to 13-3 and doing what we did there." Rounding out the trio was linebacker John Holecek, who spent last season with San Diego while accruing nine tackles before he was placed on injured reserve 11/28/01 with a knee injury. Prior to his time with the Chargers, Holecek served as the Buffalo Bills inside linebacker in the 3-4 defensive scheme, similar to the one the Texans will run. Over his seven-year career, Holecek registered 516 tackles and is looking to re-join a defensive unit where he can flourish. "I played a 3-4 in Buffalo and then I had to play the 4-3 a little bit last year," Holecek said. "I'm looking to play the 3-4 again, so if I were to come here, it would be a good fit."
