The Houston Texans will wear a new helmet for the first time in franchise history when they host the Philadelphia Eagles for their Battle Red game. Could even more uniform changes be on the way?
Back in September, Cal McNair held a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything) session with Houston Texans fans. The Texans Chair and CEO had an intriguing response to the question of uniform changes, something that had never been done in the history of the franchise.
LindyNet: Would you ever consider changing the uniform designs? Not the colors, per se, but just the design of the uniforms? It may be the thing I hear most often.
Cal: It's definitely on the table! In fact, we have already engaged the NFL to better understand the process to formally start a fan research study and the timeline and guidelines if the fan research steered towards change. No promises but we will challenge everything, and we won't be afraid to evolve. Let me know what you hope to see!
McNair's response was the first time he hinted at veering away from the original uniform, worn since 2002, a change the fans have been asking about for years. With the NFL easing up on uniform rules for the 2022 season, the Texans unveiled their Battle Red helmet during Training Camp to overwhelmingly rave reviews from both fans and players.
"The amazing reaction from the fan base and the city on the Battle Red helmet is what sparked all this," Texans Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications Doug Vosik said on SportsRadio 610's Payne and Pendergast show Wednesday. "It gave us that confidence to explore new grounds and I'll tell you, with Cal's leadership, the Reddit comment was no joke. We were already behind the scenes, based upon the fan reaction of the Battle Red helmet, working with the NFL to figure out, hey what would the process look like for us to explore updating uniforms at some point in the future?"
Under the leadership of McNair, President Greg Grissom and Vosik, the Texans' motto has been to fearlessly evolve, re-engage their fan base and meet new fans. Since that AMA session, Vosik said the Texans have held "countless meetings" with the NFL to better understand the uniform change process.
"What I'm really excited to share is that fans will have the opportunity over the next couple of months, whether it be through surveys or even attending some focus groups, to offer their opinion on our uniforms, on our jerseys, on our helmets and things like that," Vosik said. "So, we're finally at the phase where we can truly get the voice of the fan through those means."
The fans have already voiced their enthusiasm for the Battle Red helmets and the new H-town merchandising and the Texans are listening.
"All the H-town gear that we've dropped this year has been the No. 1 selling collection of the Texans as far back as we can look with data, so the fans have really, really loved it," Vosik said.
Kickoff for the Texans Battle Red game against the Eagles will be 7:15 pm. CT on Thursday Night Football. The game can be streamed on Amazon Prime and will be broadcast locally on FOX-26's sister station, MY20 KTXH-TV, and on SportsRadio 610. Browse tickets.
