Tank Dell might not be back on a football field until 2026 as the extent of the horrific knee injury he sustained against Kansas City Chiefs becomes agonizingly clear.

The 25-year-old Houston Texans wide receiver was taken off the field in an ambulance and went straight to hospital in Kansas City, where he stayed overnight.

It emerged that Dell tore his ACL and dislocated his kneecap after colliding with teammate Jared Wayne in the end zone catching a touchdown pass.

But the damage doesn’t stop there, it has now emerged. According to a new report out of Houston on Christmas Eve, Dell also tore his media and lateral ligaments and damaged his meniscus.

The report by Click2Houston says that Dell will need more than one surgery on his road to recovery and it means that he will almost certainly not be able to play for the Texans in 2025.

The Texans have been coy over the full prognosis for Dell as they establish the finer details.

But quarterback C.J. Stroud looked like he was fighting back tears on the field at Arrowhead Stadium as his teammate received medical treatment during the game.

Speaking on Sunday, head coach DeMaco Ryans said: ‘We’ll still be evaluating, see where he is, still meeting with doctors to see what’s next for him, but it is a significant knee injury, and our thoughts and prayers are with him.

‘We would really like to thank the Kansas City medical team and the doctors there and their staff for being very accommodating,’ Ryans added.

‘For helping out with Tank, giving him a room, getting him set up. I really thought those guys did a really unbelievable job.’

Stroud spoke out about Dell after the Chiefs loss on Saturday and clearly found it hard to discuss.

‘All you can do is really pray. End of the day, God still gets the glory,’ he opened. ‘No matter what happens to me, I’ll be here cause of the grace of Jesus. The grace of who he is in my life and Tank’s life.’

‘For anything, how it goes, left or right, up or down, I always have to praise my lord and savior. It’s not easy but after that, I try to use it as motivation.

‘It’s not easy to just let it go, especially as my best friend. Not easy to move on and just keep playing but I try to do as best as I could.’

‘My teammates helped me up. I appreciate these guys talking to me cause I was going through it. So I appreciate them just being there for me.’