How Texans benefited from lengthy road trip: ‘We grew as a brotherhood’

PITTSBURGH – Ten days on the road, away from the oppressive Houston heat, provided the Texans with a cooler atmosphere and a time to bond on and off the field.

Between a trip to Canton, Ohip, for the Hall of Fame game against the Chicago Bears followed by Andre Johnson’s induction ceremony, four practices at The University School, general manager Nick Caserio’s alma mater, walkthroughs at John Carroll University where he played quarterback and a second road preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, it was a lot of activity for the defending AFC South champions.

That included a lot of time for away from the field for dinners, playing cards, dominos and video games as well as time to talk with each other and get to know each other better as teammates before returning to Houston on Saturday in advance of a Sunday night practice.

“I definitely think we grew as a brotherhood,” Texans Pro Bowl quarterback C.J. Stroud said after a win over the Steelers at Acrisure Stadium. “That’s very important. It was just spending time playing cards, playing dominos, just enjoying one another. It’s been a blessing. We’re ready to get back to Houston, though.”

When Texans veteran linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair was playing for the San Francisco 49ers, he grew accustomed to extended road trips.

As the team traveled back and forth from the West Coast under the leadership of coach Kyle Shanahan, they felt they benefited logistically and intangibly by spending extra time on the road. And coach DeMeco Ryans has adopted a similar strategy with the Texans

“When I was with San Francisco, same with DeMeco, which is probably where he got the philosophy, we always had to be on the road,” Al-Shaair said. “When we played the East Coast games, we were always on the road and we always got closer because you had nothing else to do but spend time with the guys.

“That’s how it felt. It felt really good to be around the guys. Of course, we were in the middle of Cleveland, we weren’t even in the city, it was on the outskirts. It was a whole lot of bonding and everybody having a great time. We made the most of it, and I’m happy.”

The Texans held dinners for the offense and the defense while in Cleveland. The losing team, under a system of S.W.A.R.M. points, had to pay the tab.

“Like big plays, just different things, we all had points,” Al-Shaair said. “We went to dinner just a great time bonding. I’m not big on fancy steak places. I had some salmon and some lobster. It was good.”

“That’s important as a whole, getting to know the guys,” defensive end Danielle Hunter said. “That makes the team better. It was a good bonding experience.”

The dinners included players sitting next to someone they didn’t know previously to become more familiar with each other.

“It was a good experience for sure,” running back Jawhar Jordan said. “For rookies, that was big.”

Ryans was ready to get home and see his family, but he was extremely happy with how the road trip went.

“We’ve been on the road long enough, we’re excited to get back home and see our families,” Ryans said. “The biggest thing with being on the road is you see guys grow closer together. That was the whole idea behind it, making sure our guys connected on a deeper level.

“That was accomplished on the field and see our guys get better on the field. Everything we wanted from coming up to Cleveland, we accomplished. Everything we set out to do. Now, let’s see what the heat is talking about in Houston.”

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