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June is here and OTAs are upon us. Yesterday was a special day for the Houston Texans and the their fans. A bevy of former Texans came out to watch and support the “new” Texans.
HC DeMeco Ryans greets several former Texans before Tuesday’s OTA. pic.twitter.com/8QTbkEPxVO
— Drew Dougherty (@DoughertyDrew) June 6, 2023
How many of these Texans legends can you name?
Legends dropping in for OTAs pic.twitter.com/AkyBQbWxI6
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) June 6, 2023
Today a huge number of former players visited #Texans OTAs. Many I haven’t seen in a minute. Was great to catch up with @JJMoses84. He’s spoken at a lot of kids camps, and he was a fave of my kids who aren’t kids anymore. Secret photog reflected in my glasses lol pic.twitter.com/JEWU5ltjzk
— Stephanie Stradley (@StephStradley) June 7, 2023
After what many described as a great day of practice for the team, new head coach DeMeco Ryans, tight end Dalton Schultz, wide receiver Nico Collins and running back Dameon Pierce took to the mic for post-drill media chats.
We are LIVE with DeMeco Ryans, Dameon Pierce, Dalton Schultz and Nico Collins speak with the media during OTAs https://t.co/Dp5MNOARzu
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) June 6, 2023
When asked about his decision to sign with the Texans this offseason, Schultz rained praise all over the coaching staff.
Dalton Schultz
The coaching staff’s a big thing... top to bottom they’ve assembled a staff that’s top notch... that felt very comfortable, especially when I first came here, feeling that ok, this is a place that’s been set up with people around that are fully committed to helping their players from anything from recovery to nutrition to strength training. So I think once I found that they have everybody in place to kinda handle all the non-football on the field stuff, that just made the decision easy for me.
When asked about goals for 2023, #31 showed his hunger.
Dameon Pierce
Try to get more yards, more touchdowns, be a bigger role on this offense, be a better leader... the more ways I get involved the better. I love that.
When asked about his new quarterback, Pierce lit up like someone speaking of a favorite relative.
QB C.J. Stroud & the Texans getting set for Tuesday’s OTA. pic.twitter.com/40z51dw1wu
— Drew Dougherty (@DoughertyDrew) June 6, 2023
Pierce (cont’d.)
CJ’s a great kid. I love the way he’s come in and worked. Obviously he’s a high draft pick so there's a lot of expectations on him and he’s handling it very well, handling the media very well, handling the playbook... he’s a quick learner. The only thing I tell him every time I’m on the field with him is ‘command the huddle. Don’t be scared, don’t be shying away from that leadership role. You’ve got guys on this team who are behind you, who will help you out in that aspect and we’re here to lift you up. So if you go out there and make a mistake, you’re on solid ground and we’re going to help you through it.’
There’s plenty more where that came from. Take the time to listen, if you can.
TLDR: So far, 2023 is shaping up as the best year for the Houston Texans and their fans in a very long time.
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