Tag: Texans rookie

Texans DE Will Anderson brings humble approach to rookie minicamp: ‘I haven’t arrived yet’

Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson may be a talented rookie, but he understands fully he must keep a consistent, humble approach.

HOUSTON — Located three miles west of the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Georgia, is a small city named Hampton with just under 10,000 residents. Most individuals from the town must mention the racetrack as a point of reference to give directions to anyone wanting to visit.

Many find it strange to mention a significant landmark before mentioning the name of the city they are from, including Houston Texans rookie defensive end Will Anderson, who was a superstar on the football field at Dutchtown High School located in Hampton, Georgia.

“Yeah, when people ask me questions, it’s crazy because, like for me, I don’t really be thinking about stuff like that, coming from a small town,” said Anderson after his second day of rookie minicamp. “My mind just be other places. It’s like now when people be like, where is Dutchtown at, I be like, ‘Well, Dutchtown is in Henry County.’”

While many may not be as geographically inclined to tell you what part of Georgia Henry County is located, they will never forget the impression that the third overall selection in the 2023 NFL draft left there and at Alabama, where he was awarded Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the year in back-to-back seasons to go along with the consecutive unanimous first-team All-American selections.

Anderson is following the same path that another former NFL player took over 17 years ago when he was selected in the second round of the 2006 NFL draft by the Houston Texans after having a stellar college career at Alabama, where he, too, earned SEC Player of the Year and unanimous first-team All-American selection in his final season with the Crimson Tide.

The footsteps that Anderson is following in is none other than his coach DeMeco Ryans, who also has to mention famous people like former Heisman Trophy Winner Bo Jackson or hip-hop artist Gucci Mane in reference to his hometown of Bessemer, Alabama.

“Yeah, for me, I was super excited,” said Anderson about being drafted by the Texans and getting a chance to play for coach Ryans. “I think that’s one of the biggest things that I was hoping and praying to God for; is just whatever head coach I get; we have the same mentality.

“God blessed me, and I was fortunate enough to be in this program to share that with a coach who has the same mentality as me, the same grind, grit, and relentless mindset. So, it’s going to be easy for me to grasp what he’s saying, what he’s trying to get across to the team. Like I said, I’m just super excited to be part of this. It’s a big blessing and opportunity.”

Most Texans fans and general manager Nick Caserio hope Anderson sticks to the script written by Ryans, who was awarded NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2006. Yet, Anderson knows that he has a lot of work to do before even being considered for such a prestigious honor.

“I haven’t arrived yet,” Anderson told the media on Saturday. “I just got here. I haven’t did anything yet. I got to earn it. I got to go out there and get the trust from the guys, keep connecting with them, and just paying attention to everything I’m doing and working hard. Yeah, I’m here, but I haven’t arrived to where I want to be at yet.”

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WATCH: C.J. Stroud throws passes at Texans rookie minicamp

Get a glimpse of Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud warming up at rookie minicamp.

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud solves a big problem the franchise had under center for the past couple seasons.

Aaron Wilson from KPRC-TV shot video of Stroud throwing passes as part of his warmups during rookie minicamp Saturday at Houston Methodist Training Center.

The Texans are well aware of Stroud’s abilities with the football. What the focus has been at minicamp is getting the former Ohio State signal caller to learn the offense.

“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 C.J. stepping in the huddle and making the play calls,” coach DeMeco Ryans said May 12. “How much and how quickly can they grasp the terminology and be able to communicate that effectively on the field?”

The Texans picked Stroud No. 2 overall in Round 1 of the 2023 NFL draft.

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Texans coach DeMeco Ryans says speed of the game is biggest learning curve for rookies

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans says the biggest adjustment rookies must make in the pros is to the speed of the game.

DeMeco Ryans has a total of 16 seasons as a player and coach in the NFL. The former linebacker knows plenty about the adjustments rookies need to make to adapt to the pro game.

Ryans met with reporters May 12 during rookie minicamp at Houston Methodist Training Center and spoke of the adjustment that rookies endure throughout their acclimation to the pros.

“It’s the speed of the game,” Ryans said. “Everything speeds up. Everyone is fast. That’s one thing, guys.”

Speed of the game is not just an element that No. 2 overall quarterback C.J. Stroud would have to deal with. The rest of the 2023 class, and even the undrafted free agents, are operating in a quicker reality.

“For me, I know it was speed of the game,” said Ryans. “It changes. Offensive linemen are much faster. Defensive line, they’re faster than you face in the college. And just how things happen, like the process and everything. Everything has to speed up a tick, so that’s one hurdle that the guys have to overcome.”

Ryans learned quickly in his first year as he was the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year with 156 combined tackles, 3.5 sacks, 13 tackles for loss, nine quarterback hits, seven pass breakups, an interception, forced fumble, and fumble recovery through all 16 starts.

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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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Texans sign seventh-round safety Brandon Hill to rookie contract

The Houston Texans have signed seventh-round safety Brandon Hill to a standard rookie contract.

The Houston Texans have added another member of their nine-player draft class to their payroll.

The Texans announced Friday they have signed seventh-round safety Brandon Hill to a standard four-year rookie contract.

General manager Nick Caserio told reporters on April 29 after the draft that Hill “fits the profile” for what new coach DeMeco Ryans wants to install on defense.

“Fast, tough, explosive, urgent, 5-10, 195,” Caserio said. “Got a good playing style, tough. Things that DeMeco wants to emphasize on defense, he sort of fits the profile. Probably a little better closer to the line of scrimmage. We’ll see where he fits in some other spots.”

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Report: Texans sign sixth-round receiver Xavier Hutchinson to rookie contract

The Houston Texans have signed sixth-round receiver Xavier Hutchinson to a standard four-year rookie contract.

The Houston Texans have signed another one of their draft picks ahead of rookie minicamp.

According to Aaron Wilson from KPRC-TV, the Texans have signed sixth-round receiver Xavier Hutchinson to a standard four-year rookie contract.

The Texans picked the former Iowa State receiver for his on-field production with 107 catches for 1,171 yards and six touchdowns in his final season.

“I would say this is a classic example of a guy whose workout didn’t go great, but he’s a good football player, so he falls into that bucket,” general manager Nick Caserio said on April 29 after the draft. “It’s a player the offensive staff thought highly of. As we were repositioning at that point, we were trying to see who are players you had decent grades on that you have some affinity for.”

The first rookie Houston signed was sixth-round center Jarrett Patterson.

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