Cal McNair on state of the Texans: ‘I think it’s a better roster. We think we had a good offseason’

HOUSTON – Months after hiring the coach in heaviest demand this hiring cycle, the Texans have recaptured some relevance after three consecutive losing seasons.

Fans have regained after previous dwindling interest, and ticket sales are in the middle of a significant boost after apathy and frustration had grown rampant as seat prices and attendance had dropped dramatically.

Hiring former Texans Pro Bowl linebacker and NFL Assistant Coach of the Year, DeMeco Ryans, as the new leader of the franchise was an important start to another phase of an arduous rebuild process that began three years ago.

• RELATED: Houston Texans head coach Demeco Ryans on 2023 NFL Draft

Since signing Ryans to a six-year contract, one of the most lucrative deals in NFL history for a first-time head coach, the Texans have significantly overhauled the roster with free-agent additions that include defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, tight end Dalton Schultz, safety Jimmie Ward, wide receiver Robert Woods, linebacker Denzel Perryman and running back Devin Singletary, along with a trade for right guard Shaq Mason.

Plus, the Texans made Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil the highest-paid offensive lineman in the game for the second time in his career with a three-year, $75 million contract extension.

There’s considerable excitement surrounding the Texans, especially since drafting a potential franchise quarterback in C.J. Stroud, with the second overall pick and another cornerstone in former Alabama star pass rusher Will Anderson Jr. one pick later after a blockbuster trade with the Arizona Cardinals.

It’s a new day in Houston. That’s why chairman and CEO Cal McNair was smiling before teeing off at the Texans’ annual charity golf tournament.

“You just have to look at the roster, and I think it’s a better roster this year,” McNair said. “Very competitive. And you want to have competition at each of the spots on the roster, which we’re getting there. So, I see a lot of progress, a lot of good things on the way. We think we had a good offseason.”

Although the Texans have endured a dismal 11-38-1 combined record over the last two seasons, including one-and-done seasons for coaches Lovie Smith and David Culley preceded by interim coach Romeo Crennel and former coach and general manager Bill O’Brien, the AFC South franchise is now looking like an improved outfit.

Every position group appears to have either improved markedly or have the potential upside to get better than last season with the exception of lacking a true go-to wide receiver after trading Brandin Cooks to the Dallas Cowboys.

And the Texans are liking the collaboration between Ryans and general manager Nick Caserio, the primary architect of the rebuild. That means Caserio is getting the players that Ryans wants to install his systems on both sides of the football.

“Yeah, they’re working well together,” McNair said. “They see the field the same way. They see the players the same way, and that alignment is what we were after. It’s looking good so far, so we’re excited.”

Signed to a two-year contract with a maximum value of $14.5 million, Ward is living in an Airbnb with shaky cable reception. He kept tabs on the draft through text messages, and he liked what he was being informed about with the additions of Stroud and Anderson.

‘Everybody was like, ‘Y’all are not playing in the draft,’ so I’m like, ‘Golly what’s going on? They said y’all took a quarterback at No. 2. We did?’” Ward said. “Next thing you know, we traded with somebody and I was like, ‘Okay, we got DE.’ Then I was like hold on, ‘What did they do with that early second-round pick? Oh, we traded it away?’

“At the same time, we got two studs. Those are game-changers. C.J. and Will, like, man, those guys are ballers. Those are franchise players right there. I think Nick and ‘Meco did an amazing job.”

During the NFL owner’s meetings in late March, the Texans announced that initial season ticket renewals are at roughly 90 percent, which represents an improvement. And the Texans had sold nearly 3,000 new season tickets, more than double where they stood at this time a year ago.

The Texans have also formed a volunteer fan council to participate in regular focus groups and other opportunities throughout the season.

“There’s a lot of good movement there,” McNair said. “The ticket office has been getting a lot of calls. Not sure exactly where we are with the numbers, but it’s looking strong.”

The optimism surrounding the Texans is nice, but it’s nothing tangible and real until the games actually start.

They’ll find out about the when aspect of the full regular-season schedule Thursday night when the league announces the entire schedule.

“We’ll play anyone, anywhere, so let’s go,” McNair said. “We’ll play out here on the golf course or in the parking lot.”

The Texans have their usual AFC South home-and-away games in addition to hosting the Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Denver Broncos, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers. Their road games include the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets, now quarterbacked by Aaron Rodgers.

“I feel like we did a good job with the draft,” Ryans said. “We utilized the draft capital resources that we had to add some good young talent to the team. We’re not playing any games right now. We’ll see where we are come training camp, once we put the pads on, once we truly go out and play football.

“That’s when we assess the roster and see where we are. Right now, we can’t say how much better we are. You have to go play football and practice playing football to get better at football. That’s when we’ll assess truly where we are.”

The Texans are in the process of rebranding with new uniforms, emphasis on plural, in the works for the 2024 season. The uniforms might even have a nod to the city’s NFL past from the Oilers’ Luv Ya Blue era. The Battle Red helmets the Texans wore for a Thursday night game against the Philadelphia Eagles are another possibility.

“You’ll have your blue, your white and you know the other,” Texans foundation vice president Hannah McNair said. “We’re trying to meet all the deadlines. We did get paused there for a minute with the NFL. We had to renegotiate some things, but we’ll get through it and I hope the fan base will be really happy.

“It is a little bit more exciting because it is your first time, so you really want to get it right. You really want to excite the fan base. You also want the players to be excited about what they’re going to be wearing out on the field, so we’ll try to capture all of that.”

The Texans have had high attendance at their voluntary offseason program with the majority of the players participating.

As much as there’s another relaunch, a Texans 3.0 of sorts, with a third coach in three seasons implementing his philosophy, which was molded heavily from his time as the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator, they still need their own identity.

“We’ve got to find our own culture, create our own identity,” Ward said. ”We’re not San Francisco, we’re Houston. That’s who we’re going to be.”

The Texans will have their rookie minicamp starting Friday with a class headlined by Stroud and Anderson Jr.

Soon, the Texans will have full-team organized team activities and a mandatory minicamp in June before breaking for the rest of the offseason and then reconvening for training camp in late July.

“We’re ready to get all the guys on the grass,” Cal McNair said. “The rookies are coming into this week, see how they earn their spots. It’s going to be fun. They’re working every day to make the team better, and they’ll continue that journey.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.