Houston Texans Executive V.P./General Manager Nick Caserio met with the media on Wednesday in Indianapolis. The NFL Combine is taking place at Lucas Oil Stadium, and here are a few things Caserio discussed, which you can read in less than 60 seconds.
Continuity is key
Caserio, Head Coach DeMeco Ryans and the Texans are happy to have several key assistant coaches returning for the 2024 campaign. After a successful 2023, offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik was a head coach candidate for several franchises, and quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson interviewed for some offensive coordinator positions. Ultimately, both will remain in Houston, which is a plus in the eyes of Caserio.
"The one thing we're excited about is we were able to continue with some degree of continuity relative to seasons past, so even with our coaching staff specifically, we had a number of coaches interview for other jobs," Caserio said. "Some of them made a decision to stay and be a part of our program, which is a credit to them. It's really a credit to DeMeco, and it's a credit to the players. Anytime you have continuity from one year to the next, it's important because at least it gives you a foundation in place."
Offensively, it's especially exciting because of the rookie season just completed by quarterback C.J. Stroud. The Offensive Rookie of the Year will have a second season, and for the first offseason of his pro career, the same core offensive staff in place.
"The team is going to be different, the opponents are going to be different, so there's going to be a lot of things that are different, but to be able to keep a number of things at least similar or the same hopefully will be beneficial to us," Caserio said.
Cap increase effect
Last week, the news came out about the more than $30-million increase, per team, for the 2024 season. The Texans entered the offseason, according to Caserio, "in a decent position", and he explained further how the increase affects the Texans, specifically.
"It doesn't necessarily change how we're going to approach this off-season," Caserio said. "It probably potentially could be more of a one-time thing. Depending on what the number is, maybe it gives you a little flexibility. Could be add a singular player, could be add multiple players at a certain tier level, whether or not to use the money this year or push it to next year and roll it to the next year. I would say the result of what happened the other day doesn't necessarily change our thought process about how we were going to approach free agency."
Saban's Help
Since the first season of the franchise in 2002, the Texans have drafted the most players--eight apiece--from LSU and Alabama. Nick Saban coached two of the Tigers and seven from the Crimson Tide. Ryans is the lone Alabama player drafted by the Texans who wasn't coached by Saban. Mike Shula was Ryans' head coach.
Saban's had a massive influence on the landscape of NCAA and NFL football, and for Caserio, he's also been a fantastic resource when it comes to drafting players.
"Nick is great to talk to," Caserio said. "It's similar to Bill [Belichick] in some respects. They have such a library and a history of players that you can benchmark against one another. I've had a number of conversations with Coach Saban before the draft, not only the last year, but previous years, and his insight is very valuable and useful."
The Texans selected defensive end Will Anderson, Jr. and linebacker Henry To'oTo'o from Alabama last April, and Saban's input meant a lot.
"Everybody who spoke on Will's behalf and the way Will was presented – we saw that in spades, and maybe it was even better than maybe we even thought," Caserio said. "We're happy that Will is on our team. Henry did a great job this year, as well, kind of in his role. Kind of came in as a backup. He was forced to play in the middle of the year, I want to say weeks four, five, six, where we had some players that were injured, and he went out there and had some productive play. Excited about those two players and their growth, and really from year one to year two, really try to improve on some of the things they did last year."
