Tag: 2023 Texans rookie minicamp

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans appreciates LB Henry To’oTo’o’s on-field communication

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans appreciates the amount of on-field communication that was part of LB Henry To’oTo’o’s college career.

The Houston Texans added to their linebacking corps on Day 3 of the 2023 NFL draft with Alabama’s Henry To’oTo’o.

Houston already had an Alabama linebacker on the team in former 2022 third-rounder Christian Harris. However, the Texans grabbed To’oTo’o in the fifth round to bolster their group.

According to coach DeMeco Ryans — incidentally a former Alabama linebacker himself — the Texans admired To’oTo’o for his consistency on the field as well as his ability to relay defensive calls.

“Henry has been a very consistent player,” Ryans told reporters May 12 at Texans rookie minicamp. “Watching him in Alabama over the years, he’s been very consistent and a part of a really good defense there.”

In two seasons with the Crimson Tide, the 22-year-old collected 205 combined tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, a pass breakup, and a forced fumble through 28 career games.

“He’s a very good communicator, running the show there,” said Ryans. “They have a lot of calls, checks with that defense. So just being familiar with it, I have high respect for guys who have to communicate in college because it’s an easier transition when they come to our level.”

The Texans also have linebackers Christian Kirksey, Denzel Perryman, Garret Wallow, Jermaine Carter, Blake Cashman, Jake Hansen, and Cory Littleton on the roster.

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Texans coach DeMeco Ryans clarifies Will Anderson’s role on defense

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans explained the role Will Anderson will have in their defensive scheme.

Will Anderson is an edge defender. All of the pre-draft materials on the former Alabama product labeled him as such.

The Houston Texans have a better understanding of where they place their No. 3 overall pick in new coach DeMeco Ryans’ 4-3 defense.

Ryans met with reporters on May 12 and noted that what the Texans are asking of Anderson is, “not a huge position change for Will.”

The technique for how the Texans plan to use Anderson’s edge defense skills is what will alter from his playing days with the Crimson Tide.

“Mostly at Alabama he was standing up; we’ll have him down in a three-point stance,” Ryans said. “It’s not a big time position change for him. We won’t have him playing over the guard like he did some there later in his career, so it’s not a huge position change for Will.”

With Anderson getting to play more on the edge, it should keep him fresher since he won’t have to balance going against interior offensive linemen.

The Texans have a quartet of effective defensive tackles in Maliek Collins, Roy Lopez, Hassan Ridgeway, and Sheldon Rankins that should keep Anderson’s talents on the edge.

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Texans coach DeMeco Ryans lays out the goals for rookie minicamp

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans presented what he wants the players and coaches to get out of the two-day rookie minicamp.

HOUSTON — Houston Texans first-year coach DeMeco Ryans was back in a familiar place on Friday morning, and it showed on his face as he displayed the signature smile that the media and fans have grown accustomed to.

The 2023 rookie class for the Texans began their three-day minicamp at Houston Methodist Training Center. It was a time for the young men to acclimate to the daily regiment of conducting themselves as NFL players once the season starts.

“The most important thing for me is for those guys to have a just a general understanding of the terminology, offense, defense, and terminology,” Ryans said after practice. “Learning the offense, it’s like learning a new language, so then you have to learn how to speak that language and speak it fluently, especially for [quarterback] C.J. (Stroud) stepping in the huddle and making the play calls. How much and how quickly can they grasp the terminology and be able to communicate that effectively on the field?”

Ryans, who also had a very productive tenure as an NFL player, also wants to teach the rookies the importance of maintaining themselves and continuing to learn away from the field.

“Getting in the training room, hydration, food, whatever they need, and then what we’ll do with our guys is we’ll have more meetings,” said Ryans when asked about the daily routine he is implementing for the rookies. “We’ll have special teams’ meetings and have individual meetings. Those guys will come in, be able to watch the film with their coaches, and the coaches will be able to coach them up individually on things they need to improve on, and then we’ll have a benchmark for tomorrow to see that actual improvement and show them again after tomorrow’s practice.”

The rookies aren’t the only ones having to learn to adapt for the Texans. Ryans is in his first year as head coach after spending the last two seasons as defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers. Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik and defensive coordinator Matt Burke are also making their rookie debuts as coordinators this season.

Ryans knows it is just as crucial for the new staff members to understand his way of running a football team and how they must work together to succeed.

“It’s a matter of us coming together collectively and doing what’s best for the Texans,” Ryans said. “We have a lot of guys coming from a lot of different places. Like we’re not trying to replicate what was done somewhere else. We’re trying to implement the things we need and what’s best for our team here. It’s a lot of guys coming together and just communicating on schedules and timing of practice. How long do we need to be out there and all of those things?

“There are a lot of smart people around here to help me out with that. Got a lot of good people. Our training staff, the strength staff, a lot of great people here to work with that’s made the transition to head coach loss easier.”

Houston will resume day two of the rookie minicamp on Saturday at Methodist Training Center.

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WATCH: Texans rookies introduce their nicknames at minicamp

A few Houston Texans rookies took time to explain their nicknames shortly before minicamp got underway.

The Houston Texans shared a video on their official Twitter account to help fans to more acquainted with the 2023 rookies.

As the players were crossing over the skyway to go to practice Friday morning at Houston Methodist Training Center, they shared with the team’s social media crew their nicknames.

“I was ‘X-Man’ because my name’s Xavier,” sixth-round receiver Xavier Hutchinson explained.

“Growing up, I was ‘Golden Toe Joe,'” punter Joe Doyle said. “My name is Joe and I’m a kicker.”

Fifth-round linebacker Henry To’oTo’o revealed that his nickname is “Hank the Tank,” and the explanation he gave was because, simply, he was a tank.

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Texans sign 9 undrafted free agents

The Houston Texans have signed nine undrafted free agents in time for rookie minicamp.

The Houston Texans have announced the signings of nine undrafted free agents.

A third of the Texans’ signings were offensive linemen as they added former Western Michigan tackle Dylan Deatherage, former guard-tackle Tyler Beach from Wisconsin, and former Auburn tackle Kilian Zierer.

Houston signed two receivers with Jared Wayne from Pittsburgh and Jesse Matthews from San Diego State.

The Texans signed former Arizona State running back Xazavian Valladay. Houston also signed former Memphis punter Joe Doyle.

The two defensive players Houston signed were former LSU defensive end Ali Gaye and former Duke safety Darius Joyner.

Houston has also signed four of their nine draftees.

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C.J. Stroud not speaking at Texans rookie minicamp is departure from predecessors

C.J. Stroud not speaking at Houston Texans rookie minicamp is departure from the way other rookie QBs have dealt with the minicamp.

Three other rookie quarterbacks are going to talk this weekend at their teams’ rookie minicamps.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young will share his insights into his baby steps into the NFL. Anthony Richardson will speak about his experience joining the Indianapolis Colts. Even Will Levis will have some words even though the Tennessee Titans are probably going to keep Ryan Tannehill under center.

The Houston Texans and C.J. Stroud are different, and coach DeMeco Ryans told reporters that the team has, “other players that we drafted.”

“C.J. is not the only player that we drafted,” Ryans said with his disarming smile. “We’ve got multiple guys we drafted. We want to let you guys talk to all these guys, and C.J. will be able throughout the spring, later in the spring, also in training camp, so he will be available. Hold your horses, brother.”

It makes sense Stroud has a lot to deal with as the first-round quarterback with the expectations of the entire franchise upon him.

While the Texans may have their reasons for keeping Stroud shrouded, it represents a departure from the way the organization has operated while having a highly touted rookie quarterback.

In 2017, the Texans had another acclaimed field general in their midst. Houston traded with the Cleveland Browns to take the Clemson product No. 12 overall, and gave up some capital to take the two-time Davey O’Brien Award winner.

The Texans didn’t withhold the first-rounder from comment. Bill O’Brien wasn’t keeping him fresh for a presser sometime later in the spring.

The new face of the franchise spoke, and it was some of the typical fare one would expect.

“It’s going to take the hard work and the grind,” he said. “You can expect a lot of stuff and want to be great, want to be successful, especially early, but it’s a process. It’s not going to happen overnight. It’s going to take long nights, early mornings to be able to put in the work and to get what you need to get in to be successful on the field.”

But he spoke.

Whether a rookie talks or doesn’t during minicamp has no impact on games, but it does show that there is a recognizable change in how the organization operates.

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WATCH: C.J. Stroud throws to Tank Dell at Texans rookie minicamp

Quarterback C.J. Stroud threw passes to receiver Tank Dell at Houston Texans rookie minicamp.

C.J. Stroud looks natural for the part.

The No. 2 overall pick tossed passes on the first day of Houston Texans rookie minicamp Friday at Houston Methodist Training Center.

One of Stroud’s targets was former Houston Cougars receiver Tank Dell. The Texans spent their 69th overall pick in Round 3 to ensure Dell never left the city.

The goal of rookie minicamps across the NFL isn’t so much to see what playing shape the players are in, but to get the newcomers adjusted to the workflow that comes with being a part of pro football.

Nevertheless images of Stroud connecting with Dell evokes images of what could be inside NRG Stadium in the fall.

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Houston Texans 2023 offseason workout dates: First day of DeMeco Ryans era starts April 11

The Houston Texans’ offseason workout dates have been announced. Check out the offseason workout schedule for new coach DeMeco Ryans.

The Houston Texans have been working tirelessly to assemble the best roster possible for rookie coach DeMeco Ryans as he takes over his original draft team.

The Texans have had double-digit losing seasons for the past three years, and are at a nadir not experienced since the founding of the franchise. Ryans was part of the movement to pull the Texans out of the pit when they selected him as their linebacker in Round 2 of the 2006 NFL draft.

Ryans and his coaching staff know when they will finally get their hands on the players to establish the culture of the turnaround. Here are the dates for the Texans’ offseason workouts.