Jalen Pitre grateful to be voted Texans team captain: ‘Take that job very seriously, I want to be a light for this team’

HOUSTON – Leadership is manifested in many forms. On a football team, and in most industries, actions speak at a louder volume than words.

In the case of Texans standout safety Jalen Pitre, his example of playmaking instincts, care for his teammates and passion for football and winning set him apart in every category.

In balloting from his teammates, the second-year player and former Stafford and Baylor standout was voted a team captain along with left offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil, quarterback C.J. Stroud and safety Jimmie Ward.

This was significant to Pitre. Being named a captain for his hometown NFL team one year after a mostly stellar rookie season is not taken lightly by Pitre.

“It meant the world to me,” Pitre said Tuesday during a charity event at Kids’ Meals Inc. in Houston. “I go out every day thinking about the team, just trying to help the team as much as possible. It’s huge. To be able to vote me in, I take that job very seriously. When I wake up every morning, I’m thinking about it.

“When I’m struggling in my diet and I want to eat some extra cookies at night I’m thinking about them. It’s important that they chose me for that and I don’'t take that lightly at all.”

Pitre and his teammates voted on captains during a team meeting Monday. They learned after practice from coach DeMeco Ryans who were named to leadership positions.

“I was smiling,” Pitre said. “I was really excited and thankful my teammates chose me and extremely gratefuI. I look forward to helping the team as much as possible in that role. I just want to be a light for this team”

As a rookie, the former Big 12 Conference Defensive Player of the Year led the Texans with 147 tackles and five interceptions.

When Pitre reflects on his mostly stellar rookie season, he likes most of what he immortalized on film. Pitre focuses even more on the plays that got away and is honing his technique to avoid missing tackles this season through a more controlled style.

With fast reactions, intensity and intelligence, the second-round draft pick from Baylor parlayed his skills into an immediate starting job and an impactful first NFL season.

After a strong performance in training camp and preseason games, Ryans expects even more from Pitre this season.

“Jalen is the epitome of a leader. You talk about a guy who brings it every single day, the way he works every day. He’s making plays every day. It’s no surprise that Jalen is a leader on this team and it’s no surprise that he’s getting the attention he deserves because he’s a dynamic player.

“I’m excited to see the season ahead of Jalen, just because all of the work that he’s put in. You can tell when a player is going to have a good year. When they have a training camp like Jalen’s had, he’s going to have a really good year.”

Pitre recorded the most tackles among all NFL rookies and became the first player to record more than 125 tackles and intercept five passes since the tackle statistic began being tracked in 2000, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He played 93 percent of the Texans’ total defensive snaps, rarely leaving the field.

As the Texans try to engineer a turnaround after going a combined 11-38-1 over the past three seasons, Pitre is encouraged by the outlook. After going 3-13-1 last season, the Texans have had a positive offseason.

“I feel like the mindset is shifting,” Pitre said. “You know, everybody’s hungry to do more and just to help out each other. When you got a team that is aggressive, smart and relentless, I feel like good things are going to come out of that.

“I just want to make the team better. That’s my overall goal. I just want to come in with the right mindset in order to improve from year one. I feel like I did some great things, year one, and I’m just trying to build off that.”

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