The Texans promoted Phillips from their practice squad Thursday, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.
The undrafted rookie out of Mississippi was among Houston's final roster cuts over the weekend, but it didn't take long for him to earn a callup from the practice squad. For the time being, he'll slot in as the fourth man on the depth chart at running back behind David Johnson, Duke Johnson and Buddy Howell. None of the three are listed on Houston's injury report ahead of Thursday's season opener at Kansas City, so Phillips could find himself among the Texans' seven inactive players for the contest.