As a true freshman at Alabama in 2013, Howard played in 13 games with five starts. He made his collegiate debut with three receptions for 68 yards in a victory over Texas A&M.[5] On October 19, against Arkansas, he scored his first collegiate touchdown.[6] In his next game, a victory over LSU, he had a 52-yard receiving touchdown.[7] He finished the year with 14 receptions for 269 yards and two touchdowns.[8][9] As a sophomore in 2014, he had 17 receptions for 260 yards.[10] His best performance of the season was when he had three receptions for 81 yards in a loss to Ole Miss.[11] As a junior in 2015, Howard had 38 receptions for 602 yards and 2 touchdowns.[12] He was the Offensive MVP of Alabama's victory over Clemson in the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship after recording five receptions for 208 yards and two touchdowns.[13][14] As a senior in 2016, he had 45 receptions for 595 yards and three touchdowns.[15] His best performance of the season came in the National Championship rematch against Clemson. In the 35–31 loss, he had four receptions for 106 yards and a touchdown.[16]
Howard was considered by some to be underutilized in the Crimson Tide offense despite back to back seasons recording the most receptions ever for a tight end under Saban at Alabama.[17][18] When asked about Howard's role in the offense after the 2016 season, Saban said, "O.J., quite honestly, should have been more involved all year long."[17]
Coming out of college, Howard was projected as a first round pick by the majority of NFL experts and scouts. He received an invitation to the Senior Bowl and chose to participate although he was already a first round prospect. He was able to raise his stock by having a significant week of practice for the Senior Bowl and was voted by a panel of scouts as Senior Bowl's top practice player of the week.[22] Howard finished the game with four catches
for 39 receiving yards, helping the South defeat the North 16–15.[23] He attended the NFL Combine and completed all the required combine and positional drills. At Alabama's Pro Day, he chose to only run positional drills for the representatives and scouts. Howard was ranked the top tight end in the draft by Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Pro Football Focus, NFLDraftScout.com, NFL analyst Mike Mayock, and NFL analyst Bucky Brooks.[24][25][26]
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Howard in the first round (19th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft.[29] He was only the second Alabama tight end selected in the first round in the common draft era, after Ozzie Newsomein1978.[30] On May 22, 2017, Howard signed with the Buccaneers, a four-year deal worth $11 million featuring a $6.2 million signing bonus.[31]
Howard entered the regular season as one of the starting tight ends along with veteran Cameron Brate.[32]
Due to Hurricane Irma, the Buccaneers had to move their Week 1 game to later in the season. On September 17, 2017, in Week 2, Howard made his professional regular season debut and caught one reception for 17-yards in the Buccaneers 29–7 victory over the Chicago Bears.[33] In Week 4, against the New York Giants, he recorded a 58-yard reception for the first touchdown of his career.[34] In Week 7, against the Buffalo Bills, he had a breakout game with six receptions for 98 yards and two touchdowns.[35] He was placed on injured reserve on December 20, 2017.[36] He started the first 14 games his rookie season, finishing with 26 receptions for 432 yards and six touchdowns.[37]
In Week 2, against the Philadelphia Eagles, Howard recorded a 75-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick as part of a 96-yard performance in the victory.[38] In Week 9, against the Carolina Panthers, he recorded two receiving touchdowns in the loss.[39] On November 20, 2018, he was placed on injured reserve after suffering foot and ankle injuries in Week 11.[40] He finished the season with 34 receptions for 565 yards and five touchdowns in ten games and eight starts.[41]
On April 29, 2020, the Buccaneers exercised the fifth-year option on Howard's contract,[43] worth $6.013 million guaranteed for the 2021 season.[44] Howard recorded three catches for 50 yards and a touchdown during the 38–31 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 4.[45] He suffered a torn Achilles in the game, and was placed on injured reserve on October 6, 2020.[46] He would go on to win his first Super Bowl ring with the team despite him not playing in the game due to injury as Tampa Bay beat the Kansas City Chiefs by a score of 31–9 in Super Bowl LV.[47]
On September 2, 2022, Howard signed with the Houston Texans.[51] In the Texans' 2022 regular season opener, Howard had two receiving touchdowns in the 20–20 tie to the Indianapolis Colts.[52]
