HOUSTON – The Houston Texans have announced that long-time president Jamey Rootes will be leaving the organization.
According to a news release, Rootes is leaving to “pursue his interests as a writer, public speaker, consultant and professor at the University of Houston.”
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“We sincerely appreciate Jamey’s multiple contributions to the Texans franchise over his tenure and look forward to seeing him succeed in his new ventures,” said Texans chair and CEO Cal McNair. “We will now build upon this foundation and move forward with a bold and unwavering commitment to winning championships, creating memorable experiences for our fans, and doing great things for Houston.”
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Rootes joined the Texans in 2000 and throughout his tenure, he oversaw many things including the creation and launch of the team’s identity. According to the release, he was also responsible for all of the Texans’ business functions.
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“The past two decades have been an amazing blessing for me and my family and I have the McNairs to thank for that,” Rootes said. “It has been an honor to serve them in this capacity for as long as I have. I want to thank my teammates as we could not have had so many successes without their hard work and dedication to the team. I also want to thank the best fans in the National Football League, whom I call ‘Texans Nation.’ Your passionate support created a tremendous homefield advantage, established the best tailgating experience in the NFL and sold out every home game. I will always be a proud Texan and I look forward to continuing to support our team.”
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The team said it will commence an immediate search for a new president. The search will include a diverse slate of candidates, including internal candidates from the business side.
Sources tell KPRC 2 Sports Director Randy McIlvoy that Greg Grissom is stepping in as Interim President and will assume Rootes’ duties. Grissom has been with the team since 2002 and in his role as Senior Vice President of Corporate Development since 2017.