Rex Grossman had planned to spend the weekend relaxing with his family in the Midwest, but a call from the Texans sent him in a different direction. Grossman, a 29-year-old free agent, flew to Houston and signed a deal with the team on Friday.
"I have been a free agent now for a couple of months," Grossman said. "There have been some teams that I almost went to, but it didn't happen. A couple of days ago, actually, I got a call from my agent (Drew Rosenhaus) that Houston was interested and that coach (Gary) Kubiak would be calling.
"I didn't expect anything for a couple of days. I went home to Indianapolis and on my flight, I guess, the whole deal got done. As soon as I landed in Indianapolis, I was a Houston Texan."
{QUOTE}A former first-round pick, Grossman spent six seasons with the Chicago Bears. He appeared in 36 career games with 31 starts. During his career, he has compiled a 19-12 record (.593) as a starter and led the Bears to Super Bowl XLI after the 2006 season and also brought Chicago to the playoffs in 2005.
"I feel like I can throw the ball deep and make plays," Grossman said. "That's really what I want to do. I'd like to think that when called upon, I can make big plays and do my job."
The Texans have quarterback Matt Schaub as their starter and signed former Detroit Lions quarterback Dan Orlovsky to a deal during the offseason. Grossman will compete with Orlovsky and Alex Brink for backup duties.
"I'm going to be a good soldier, but at the same time, I am going to compete and do the best I can," Grossman said. "They've got their starter and they brought in Dan Orlovsky. I am just going to get in the mix and see where I fit in."
Grossman threw for 6,164 yards and 33 touchdowns during his NFL career. His best season came in 2006 when he threw for 3,193 yards, second most in Bears history. He passed for 23 touchdowns that season on his way to leading Chicago to the NFC North division title and a berth in the Super Bowl. He started all 16 regular-season games that season, becoming the first Bears quarterback to do so since 1995.
Grossman was selected with the 22nd overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft from the University of Florida, where he finished among the all-time passing leaders in school history. He ranks third with 9,164 passing yards and second with 77 touchdowns passes. Grossman finished as the 2001 Heisman Trophy runner-up and was voted the *Associated Press *Player of the Year after his senior campaign.
