On Saturday, Jan. 13 of this year, the “Texas Team,” the Houston Texans crushed the Cleveland Browns 45-14. This win is monumental for the Texans, as it is now time to prepare for their first divisional-round game since 2019, about five years ago. With Dallas’ loss against the Green Bay Packers, the Texans now stand as the only Texas team going into the playoffs. However, though this glamourous moment is weighing heavily on Texan hearts, some Texas fans feel smug seeing that they are being taken this far with a new head coach and a rookie quarterback.
Former linebacker and current head coach of the Houston Texans, DeMeco Ryans, has proved more than his worth to be at the head of the table through all he has recently accomplished in his first season with the team. However, Ryans is not new to the team, seeing that the last time he had interacted with the proud Texan team he had been a part of the squad as a first pick for the team in the 2006 NFL Draft. He played as a linebacker for six years before being traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, but not before pushing the limits as a rookie, achieving Rookie of the Year, and increasing the Texans’ tackle stats.
Unfortunately, Ryans would suffer an injury during his time, and two years afterward would be released from the Eagles. Ryans would go on to do some assistant coaching/coordinating for the San Francisco 49ers where he proved knowledgeable and essential in the team. Then when the head coach spot on his original team, the Texans, opened yet again, Ryans found himself back where he had started, but this time with a newfound position.
The head coach spot had been filled and then unseated by three coaches, all of whom subjectively ran the Texans into the ground, with the Texans being last in the division this past year. With the preceding three head coaches having less than a 35% win percentage, hope was sparse for Ryans’ turn in the chair, and with the team getting two losses immediately into the season, it would seem like Texas would have to wait until next year for a comeback. However, Ryans and the Houston Texans locked in quickly, and they persevered above their fellow AFC South rivals. With a current record of 10-7-0, the Texans have surpassed recent records, them being 3-13-1, 4-13-0, and 4-8-0.
Along with the hiring of Ryans, rookie CJ Stroud is another new addition to the team who has been showing that he earned his place on the squad. Stroud has helped bring the Texans to where they have not been since 2019, and with his reinforcement, the Houston Texans’ future is looking bright. The fact that the Texans have made it this far despite the team’s extremely recent past, and have gotten farther than anyone said they could, is telling of how the team and Ryans are feeling. Even if the Texans do not go any further, the work they have put in this season shows that they are moving in the right direction.
For more information on Ryans or the Houston Texans, please visit www.houstontexans.com/, www.nfl.com/news/new-texans-head-coach-demeco-ryans-on-returning-to-houston-it-was-a-no-brainer-t, and /pro-football-history.com/franchise/29/houston-texans-coaches
