Speaker 1: What's happened and everybody, Welcome to a Friday edition of
Speaker 1: Texans All Access from the Hundai Texans Or Radio studio.
Speaker 1: I'm your host, John Harris Football and on the sideline reporter.
Speaker 1: Glad to be with you, and nothing like ending the
Speaker 1: week with a visit with Texans general manager Nick Cassario.
Speaker 2: We'll get that in a little bit.
Speaker 1: We'll also have a little where are they now with
Speaker 1: roe Beart Smith, one of the last guys to wear
Speaker 1: ninety nine before Travis Johnson wore it and then I
Speaker 1: think J. J.
Speaker 2: Watt has been the last to wear it.
Speaker 1: So Robert Smith will be on the show here a
Speaker 1: little bit, and then we'll go around the NFL because
Speaker 1: as the DeAndre Hopkins world turns, took a trip to Foxborough,
Speaker 1: which I would say surprising but a little bit a
Speaker 1: little bit given the history of their offensive coordinator and
Speaker 1: DeAndre Hopkins. But then again Bill Belichick will make the
Speaker 1: decision on that, so we'll see what happens with DeAndre Hopkins.
Speaker 1: But Sunday he's going to Tennessee, so he's in New England,
Speaker 1: He's at Tennessee and we'll see where the talented pass
Speaker 1: catcher ends up very very soon.
Speaker 2: Maybe not.
Speaker 1: Maybe it takes all away training camp and waits for
Speaker 1: a player to get hurt and then you can fill
Speaker 1: in a spot. So we'll talk a little bit more
Speaker 1: about the NFL goings on in our final segment, but
Speaker 1: we kick it off with Nick Cassario.
Speaker 2: We always a blast talking to Nick.
Speaker 1: We talked about any number of things, including when Nick
Speaker 1: was a kid, what did he do for summer vacation?
Speaker 1: As I put up my hands in air quote form,
Speaker 1: let's go mark me Nick.
Speaker 3: Now we are delighted to be joined by general manager
Speaker 3: Nick Cassario. Nick, how's it going? Happy summer and OTA's
Speaker 3: a mini camp and everything else?
Speaker 4: Good to be here, Good to see you guys.
Speaker 3: Well, tell us how it's going right now, because we're
Speaker 3: in that off season practice period before the long break.
Speaker 3: So what are you seeing out there? What can you
Speaker 3: share with us about that?
Speaker 5: Yeah?
Speaker 6: Really, at this point, we've had a fairly productive spring
Speaker 6: nine practices to this point, I have a few more
Speaker 6: remaining next week kind of finish off with the mini camp.
Speaker 6: It'll be very similar to what we've done here in
Speaker 6: the last few weeks, but from the start to where
Speaker 6: we are now as a team. We've made We've made
Speaker 6: some progress. You can see both individual and collective improvement,
Speaker 6: whether it's a position group, whether it's an overall group
Speaker 6: offensively or defensively. The players have worked hard, they had
Speaker 6: a good attitude, in good condition. Really, this is about
Speaker 6: just sort of laying the foundation, getting everything installed, and
Speaker 6: we come back in training camp kind of start back over,
Speaker 6: but it'll move at a quicker pace and then we're
Speaker 6: really getting ready to play football. So overall, we're pleased
Speaker 6: with what progress that we made. And you can't speak
Speaker 6: enough about the players, just their attitude, their approach, their
Speaker 6: professionalism on day to day basis. The coaches have worked hard,
Speaker 6: the players have worked hard. We've made progress. So we'll
Speaker 6: see if we continue to build on it as we go.
Speaker 4: Nick used the keyword install.
Speaker 1: How important have these weeks during OTAs and mini camp been,
Speaker 1: given the fact that new verbiage, new offense, new defense,
Speaker 1: et cetera. How important have those week Spenser, You can
Speaker 1: hit the ground running it in training camp.
Speaker 6: No, it's huge, and this is a great opportunity to
Speaker 6: maximize the time that you have with the players. We
Speaker 6: go from phase two to phase three, you're implementing the
Speaker 6: things that you've discussed in the classroom. Now there's an
Speaker 6: application component once you actually get on the field, and
Speaker 6: there's going to be things that happen at a different pace,
Speaker 6: a different speed. And you can see just standing behind
Speaker 6: the drills and listening to some of the communication on
Speaker 6: both sides of the ball. That's where you start to
Speaker 6: build a foundation, and you start to build the trust
Speaker 6: with the players that are next to you, and then
Speaker 6: you talk after the play what did you see on
Speaker 6: that play? Well, here's the reason I made that call.
Speaker 6: And then you go back and can watch it on
Speaker 6: film and you correct it and you talk about it.
Speaker 6: So there's been a lot of really good information flow
Speaker 6: back and forth from the players to the coaches and
Speaker 6: vice versa.
Speaker 4: But this is really our.
Speaker 6: Opportunity to practice what we've put in place, what we've
Speaker 6: installed in the classroom, and the only way you get
Speaker 6: better is with reps and work.
Speaker 3: What can you tell us about the offense and how
Speaker 3: it might look what you're seeing out here putting the
Speaker 3: system in how Bobby Slowak's offense is going to operate.
Speaker 6: The one thing about the spring that you probably offensively
Speaker 6: can't spend too much time on or it's just the
Speaker 6: way it's set up is it's the running game. So
Speaker 6: kind of to John's question, that's more of in the classroom.
Speaker 6: Here's the base, here's the scheme, here's how the plays
Speaker 6: are blocked. Because of the limited amount of contact you
Speaker 6: can have, So the spring ends up being a little
Speaker 6: bit more about the passing game. So it's about the timing,
Speaker 6: It's about the execution of the overall passing game, ball placement,
Speaker 6: seeing coverage, reacting to what you see. I would say
Speaker 6: it's gonna be a multiple offense. I think most offenses
Speaker 6: are multiple. You're always going to start somewhere and then
Speaker 6: you're gonna sort of build on that, but multiple formations,
Speaker 6: multiple position groups.
Speaker 4: I think the big thing from a player's standpoint.
Speaker 6: Is schematically, you've probably run a lot of the same plays.
Speaker 6: It's just how are we going to term it here?
Speaker 6: How does Bobby call it? What is he looking for?
Speaker 6: What is a coaching point? I think the preciseness and
Speaker 6: the precision and the positioning of where you're supposed to
Speaker 6: be on a play is critically important, and those are
Speaker 6: things that you can work on during practice, you can
Speaker 6: work on after practice, you can work on your own
Speaker 6: in kind of pods or individual groups. Not to get
Speaker 6: off on too much of a tangent, but I think
Speaker 6: Case has done a great job of taking some of
Speaker 6: the younger players, or taking the position group in the
Speaker 6: morning before we meet or before practice and going through
Speaker 6: the script, so there's an opportunity for to hear it called,
Speaker 6: to hear the information to kind of what's my assignment
Speaker 6: on the play. Then you get in a meeting to
Speaker 6: see it again. Then you go out there and practice it.
Speaker 6: So that's you're trying. You're trying to build and get
Speaker 6: as many reps as you can. However you can do it.
Speaker 6: So I think in training camp we'll have a better
Speaker 6: idea the combination of the running game how it fits
Speaker 6: with the offense. But the running game is certainly going
Speaker 6: to be an important part of what we're doing offensively.
Speaker 1: Nick rookies coming off of their draft experience, however, you
Speaker 1: want to look at it. You want to see a group, obviously,
Speaker 1: whether it's a veteran or a rookie, you want to
Speaker 1: see them all improved. But this rookie group in particular,
Speaker 1: there obviously was a lot of spotlight because you have
Speaker 1: picks number two and three in CJ and Will. But
Speaker 1: overall as a group, what have you seen from the
Speaker 1: rookies and if you've seen the progress that you've wanted
Speaker 1: to see in that particular group.
Speaker 6: Yeah, really three things attitude, work, ethic, and progress. So
Speaker 6: in those three areas, the whole group is really done
Speaker 6: a good job. They've had a good attitude, they've been
Speaker 6: about work. They understand it's about competition. They understand it's
Speaker 6: not about whatever expectations somebody or we may or may
Speaker 6: not have for them. It's just about show up each day,
Speaker 6: be consistent, be intentional with your work, and try to
Speaker 6: make individual improvement and then try to make collective improvement
Speaker 6: within the group that you're a part of. So from
Speaker 6: that perspective, I mean, knock on wood, they've been out there,
Speaker 6: they've been available, the attitude has been good, the work
Speaker 6: has been good, and they've been very intentional what they're
Speaker 6: doing on a day to day basis.
Speaker 3: Nick, the media is able to watch some practices and
Speaker 3: there's a lot of talk about who's running with the
Speaker 3: ones and the twos and the threes. Is there anything
Speaker 3: less relevant right now than that? Discuss that phase of it,
Speaker 3: that part of it for us and what to read
Speaker 3: into those things.
Speaker 6: Yeah, probably not. It's kind of a fun story to
Speaker 6: talk about. But in the end, the spring is about
Speaker 6: installation of your offense. And really what you're doing is
Speaker 6: multiple people are working with multiple players. So because when
Speaker 6: you think of the overall arc of the season, at
Speaker 6: some point, whoever is in the building sixty five to
Speaker 6: seventy players, there's probably a good chance that they're gonna
Speaker 6: be on the field. So you're not waiting until, well,
Speaker 6: now this player is available. Now I have to get
Speaker 6: my reps with him. Everybody rolls through, everybody gets an opportunity.
Speaker 6: We're managing count rep count load. Some of that is
Speaker 6: based on sports signs. Some of that is based on
Speaker 6: what we need the player. If we get to a
Speaker 6: point we need to pull back some we've seen enough
Speaker 6: of certain players. Other players are going to get more reps.
Speaker 6: So everybody works with one another. You're communicating with each other. Honestly,
Speaker 6: it doesn't really matter who's on the field. At some point,
Speaker 6: somebody's gonna have to be on a field. But even offensively,
Speaker 6: you're gonna have eleven personnel, you have twelve personnel, you
Speaker 6: have twenty one personnel.
Speaker 4: You gonna have jumbo. Same thing on defense. You have
Speaker 4: a base group, you're gonna have a Nickel group, you gonn.
Speaker 6: Have a dime group, And there's gonna be different people
Speaker 6: in different spots, and some of this is a little
Speaker 6: bit trial and error. You might put a player in
Speaker 6: a position, let's see if he can handle it. Just
Speaker 6: as an example, Brandon Hill's taking some reps inside of
Speaker 6: formation at Nickel that he didn't do that at Pittsburgh.
Speaker 4: He's primarily been a safety. But if you enhance your.
Speaker 6: Overall ability to learn multiple spots and show that you
Speaker 6: can handle that capacity and handle the assignment, then the
Speaker 6: work that goes along with it in conjunction with what
Speaker 6: you might do in a kicking game.
Speaker 4: That's what the spring is really about. The rest of it.
Speaker 6: I mean, it's a fun story for people to talk
Speaker 6: about it right about but at any end it real
Speaker 6: didn't really matter.
Speaker 4: Get into the end of it.
Speaker 1: Then you got this big break where the players are
Speaker 1: out of the building. What's the biggest message for the
Speaker 1: players to take out of the building before they come
Speaker 1: back into a first training camp.
Speaker 6: Be smart, make good decisions, don't lose sight of the
Speaker 6: work that you have to put in and continue what
Speaker 6: you've established and put in place before training camp. So
Speaker 6: the worst thing any player can do is when we're
Speaker 6: done next week, really four to five weeks of sitting
Speaker 6: on your ass and doing nothing. That's really not going
Speaker 6: to help you get ready for training camp. It's not well,
Speaker 6: we'll get ready in training camp for the season. It
Speaker 6: really doesn't work that way. So you have to have
Speaker 6: the right mindset. You can be a little bit more
Speaker 6: strategic with how you maybe you structure your day, but
Speaker 6: have a plan. Wake up each day, what's my routine?
Speaker 4: What am I going to do?
Speaker 6: When am I trying to accomplish? Conditioning and work? Those
Speaker 6: are the things that you can focus on. It's not
Speaker 6: so much about schematics and X and O, but you
Speaker 6: can there's plenty of things that you can work on
Speaker 6: away from the building to make sure that you're mentally
Speaker 6: and physically prepared for the rigors of what you're going
Speaker 6: to endure once training camp starts.
Speaker 3: Well, we know you have who you have. The player
Speaker 3: acquisition part of the year is largely over, but it
Speaker 3: never really ends, so there's still some players out there
Speaker 3: nick in the wind, and how do you evaluate or
Speaker 3: go about the process of do we need this guy,
Speaker 3: Does he want to come here? Do we want to
Speaker 3: sign this player? How do you go about that?
Speaker 5: Now?
Speaker 6: All the above, Mark, I think the player acquisition process,
Speaker 6: and we've talked about this multiple times, is very fluid.
Speaker 6: It's ongoing, so it's not certain segments of the year.
Speaker 6: There's a little bit more volume that's associated with it.
Speaker 6: But i'll throw out the spring from you may after
Speaker 6: the draft. Until this point, we've worked players out through
Speaker 6: the spring, and you're trying to have there's a couple
Speaker 6: pods or groups of players.
Speaker 4: Kind of a camp ready list.
Speaker 6: If you lose a player in camp, maybe he's a
Speaker 6: ninety man roster player, or if there's another player that
Speaker 6: you feel can have a definitive role and really improve
Speaker 6: and help your football team. And finances are always a
Speaker 6: part of that as well. You can't lose sight of that.
Speaker 6: So we have a certain amount of flexibility that's available
Speaker 6: to us.
Speaker 4: So we've been very open minded.
Speaker 6: Demiko and has talked about this, and we've talked about
Speaker 6: this collectively. We'll look at our options and we'll try
Speaker 6: to make decisions that we feel our best for the
Speaker 6: football team. And if there's an opportunity that makes sense
Speaker 6: for us to pursue, then we'll look at if it
Speaker 6: doesn't work, we'll kind of keep moving forward. I think
Speaker 6: we have an idea of where we are as a team,
Speaker 6: kind of what we have in the building, and if
Speaker 6: there's something that we feeling we need to do, then
Speaker 6: we'll address it.
Speaker 1: Nick, when you were a New England, you guys did
Speaker 1: a lot of joint practice. In fact you're doing with
Speaker 1: us at twenty seventeen. Now you got joint practices two
Speaker 1: with Miami, two.
Speaker 2: With New Orleans.
Speaker 1: How important were was it to get those four practices
Speaker 1: on the schedule.
Speaker 6: No, it really be a great opportunity for our team
Speaker 6: to continue to grow and to work against another team,
Speaker 6: and we're going to see things from each side of
Speaker 6: the ball with both of those teams that either a
Speaker 6: we don't do or something new, and it's another learning
Speaker 6: opportunity for us. So as we get into that, how
Speaker 6: you structure practice could affect how we play the preseason games.
Speaker 6: But you want to make sure that everybody's getting an
Speaker 6: adequate amount of work. But the first two weeks will
Speaker 6: be about the Texans, and then once we transition after
Speaker 6: the New England game and Miami comes in, here. Then
Speaker 6: they'll be a little bit more of a understanding the opponent,
Speaker 6: because this is what it's going to be during the
Speaker 6: regular season. Play a game the next week, prepare for
Speaker 6: a different team, prepare for a different opponents, start to
Speaker 6: understand the personnel, start to understand what are they trying
Speaker 6: to do in all three phases, and then the following
Speaker 6: week the same thing. And that kind of simulates as
Speaker 6: best you can what the regular season is going to
Speaker 6: look like. So it's a great opportunity for really our
Speaker 6: entire organizations, great up team, for the players and coaches
Speaker 6: to kind of get hopefully productive work done with two
Speaker 6: really good teams and let's say organizations and clubs that
Speaker 6: we respect.
Speaker 3: We had a big town hall with the season ticket members,
Speaker 3: you and coach Ryans and what a couple of thousand
Speaker 3: people there or whatever, a lot of people asking questions,
Speaker 3: what'd you think of the event and what'd you take
Speaker 3: away from that? Doing what you do?
Speaker 4: Nick, My one question is where was Toro? He couldn't
Speaker 4: make that.
Speaker 3: Well, he was around somewhere taking a lot of pictures
Speaker 3: of people.
Speaker 6: No, I think that the support what it shows is
Speaker 6: there's a significant amount of support for Demico, the team
Speaker 6: what we're trying to do, and I think we're we're
Speaker 6: excited about the opportunity in front of us, and we
Speaker 6: just appreciate the fans sort of sticking with us, and
Speaker 6: there's an appetite for winning, and I think everybody is
Speaker 6: craving winning. Winning in the end is going to be
Speaker 6: about work. It's going to be about having a good
Speaker 6: process and being able to go out there and execute
Speaker 6: when it matters, most on Sundays, but.
Speaker 4: It's always great.
Speaker 6: It's a it's a different type of forum, but it
Speaker 6: gives everybody opportunity to kind of express some of their
Speaker 6: sentiments about how they feel. And we have an obligation
Speaker 6: and responsibility and kind of fiduciary duty to, you know,
Speaker 6: answer the questions, try to be honest about where we
Speaker 6: are and be realistic and just let them know and
Speaker 6: thank them. And we appreciate the support that they provide
Speaker 6: for us, because this we can turn this place into
Speaker 6: a pretty good home field advantage and it's going to
Speaker 6: be about to support that we see from the fans.
Speaker 6: So it's really about getting the stadium, fill in the stadium,
Speaker 6: make it as hard as possible in the opposing offense
Speaker 6: and give them something to cheer about. So it's a
Speaker 6: great opportunity for us to sort of connect with maybe
Speaker 6: some folks you really don't get a chance to on
Speaker 6: a regular basis.
Speaker 1: I want it known I did not plant the best question.
Speaker 4: I want to know right.
Speaker 2: Fast question.
Speaker 4: Retired of the best.
Speaker 1: No, there's no, there's no way.
Speaker 2: You can't. You cannot.
Speaker 4: It would be hard to do.
Speaker 2: It's part of your quote unquote brand speaking.
Speaker 4: I had no brand speaking brand less.
Speaker 2: The opportunity to get away, be a family get away?
Speaker 2: How much?
Speaker 1: How important is that for you to regenerate before a
Speaker 1: long season?
Speaker 6: Huge important for all of us, and I think we
Speaker 6: all have to be cognizant of the time that we
Speaker 6: have with the people that really we care about and
Speaker 6: love the most. And it's really not just about that
Speaker 6: four to six week period and all of a sudden
Speaker 6: when you go back to work and never see your
Speaker 6: family again. It's really it's your opportunity to just focus
Speaker 6: on the girls and what they want to do, and
Speaker 6: they know day doesn't have to run off to work.
Speaker 6: So which is it. It's great. I mean, honestly, really
Speaker 6: look forward to it. I think we all should look
Speaker 6: forward to a coach to look forward to it. It's
Speaker 6: good to take a step back and sort of recalibrate
Speaker 6: and refresh, and there'll be some things that will be
Speaker 6: spinning in your head. But the breakneck pace isn't there
Speaker 6: the way we know it's gonna be once training camp starts.
Speaker 6: So we're definitely excited and it'll be a great opportunity
Speaker 6: for all of us to get some time together.
Speaker 1: How hard is it for you to hit the brakes
Speaker 1: because you're going to I mean, you go right from
Speaker 1: the draft, then you go right to O T is
Speaker 1: like you're going eighty five in the left land. How
Speaker 1: hard is the throw on the brakes and be WHOA,
Speaker 1: I don't have to go in. I am on quote
Speaker 1: unquote vacation. How hard is that? Because I know it's
Speaker 1: hard for me, and I'm not even as as you are.
Speaker 6: Yeah, it's not as hard as maybe you think. It's
Speaker 6: all about just your commitment and just your attitude and approach.
Speaker 6: I think one of the things that all of us
Speaker 6: try to do, myself included, maybe there's some things personally,
Speaker 6: just from a learning standpoint, maybe there's something that you
Speaker 6: can dig into, do a deeper dive on maybe it's
Speaker 6: a topic that you've made some notes you want to
Speaker 6: go back and refresh or maybe go back. And you know,
Speaker 6: my enjoy reading, so it's something that during the summer
Speaker 6: it's an opportunity to kind of work through some things,
Speaker 6: some things that may have some relevance to what we're doing,
Speaker 6: or if you clean an idea from something you come
Speaker 6: across so that you can get as much out of
Speaker 6: it as you want and you can still be productive
Speaker 6: with your time. It's similar to what we talked about
Speaker 6: with the players. You still got to get on a
Speaker 6: regular schedule, kind of establish your routine. Whatever your pac
Speaker 6: and cadence is going to be over the course of
Speaker 6: the summer, but always look forward to it. It's a
Speaker 6: great time just for us to kind of to step
Speaker 6: away and get away. And I think all of us
Speaker 6: should take advantage of opportunities because we don't get them.
Speaker 6: You know, we're fortunate where we get four to five
Speaker 6: weeks where we really have to ourselves, and that doesn't
Speaker 6: that's not always the case.
Speaker 3: Well, being summer, a lot of people have kids, So
Speaker 3: what did you do with the summer when you were
Speaker 3: a kid?
Speaker 2: Did you have a job?
Speaker 4: Oh? Yeah, that's an awesome question.
Speaker 6: So I started playing baseball when I was six years old,
Speaker 6: so we had a six seven eight year old league.
Speaker 6: So I was doing that, and then let's see, when
Speaker 6: I was ten eleven years old, was doing AAU basketball.
Speaker 6: So when school was over, I was going from summer
Speaker 6: baseball to AAU basketball. We qualified for the national tournament.
Speaker 6: One year it was in Indianapolis, another year it was
Speaker 6: in Tennessee, another year it was in New Orleans. And
Speaker 6: in conjunction with that, so and I've talked about this,
Speaker 6: so my dad has essentially been in construction since he
Speaker 6: was eighteen nineteen years old. He's had his own business.
Speaker 6: He just turned seventy the other day and he still works.
Speaker 6: So I'd say, you know, we're grounded in a pretty
Speaker 6: strong work ethic.
Speaker 4: That's how I grew up.
Speaker 6: And part of that was we went to work with
Speaker 6: my dad, so we were shoving the concrete, doing all
Speaker 6: the labor that was associated with that, and really look
Speaker 6: forward to it. So between school was over all, I'm
Speaker 6: gonna go work with dad. And also my grandfather who
Speaker 6: passed away you know a year year and a half
Speaker 6: last year, he was also in construction. So part of
Speaker 6: it was go work with dad, go work with my grandpa,
Speaker 6: Papa Niro, And then I was doing sports. So we
Speaker 6: were we were active.
Speaker 4: I was active.
Speaker 6: We didn't take vacations, so my mom and dad were
Speaker 6: running me around to baseball field, to the basketball court
Speaker 6: and were I was working. I would wake up in
Speaker 6: the morning, I would go to work. We'd wake up,
Speaker 6: you know, early, go to work. We were on a
Speaker 6: job by seven thirty eight o'clock. We'd work till five
Speaker 6: five thirty and then as soon as work was over,
Speaker 6: I'd race to the baseball field and go play in
Speaker 6: a game. So and I honestly, I loved it. I mean,
Speaker 6: that was what we did, and did that kind of
Speaker 6: all the way through high school, and once high school
Speaker 6: was over, went to college and kind of transitioned to
Speaker 6: a little bit, and the preparation during the summer, you know,
Speaker 6: was about football workouts and look forward to that. So
Speaker 6: everybody kind of has something that they remember and just
Speaker 6: about their their child and how they grew up. And
Speaker 6: you know, but it was baseball, basketball, and I was
Speaker 6: doing construction and loved every minute of it.
Speaker 1: So you played all three sports. That sounds like my
Speaker 1: summer because when I went to Brown. My friends would be, well,
Speaker 1: where did you vacation. I'm like, I didn't vacation. I
Speaker 1: was like, I played a basketball in a baseball game
Speaker 1: in the same day.
Speaker 4: That was we didn't vacation.
Speaker 6: I think one year we went to Lake Chautaqua. That
Speaker 6: was kind of other than that. If we went away,
Speaker 6: it was traveling for baseball. We had a baseball tournament
Speaker 6: in Columbus or wherever it was, New Philadelphia, Ohio. That
Speaker 6: was our vacation and that was what we look forward to.
Speaker 6: And my parents were phenomenal about that. They never missed anything.
Speaker 6: They always got us there. They were always supportive of
Speaker 6: what we were trying to do. So very fond memories
Speaker 6: in the summer, so it wasn't as uh Honestly, these
Speaker 6: summers are a little bit slower paced than they were
Speaker 6: growing up.
Speaker 4: For you know, for my.
Speaker 3: Brother and I was Cedar Point there when.
Speaker 4: You were Cedar Point in Sandusky.
Speaker 6: Yes, I wasn't a big I know this is a
Speaker 6: shocking development, but I wasn't a big Cedar Point guy
Speaker 6: because it was not that I didn't have time for it.
Speaker 6: But I know everybody thinks I was miserable as a kid,
Speaker 6: didn't have any fun. But I enjoyed sports and I
Speaker 6: enjoyed working, so that was where the focus. But yes,
Speaker 6: Mark Cedar Point was in Sandusky, Huge, Yes you had
Speaker 6: Cedar Point in Jyaga Lake. We're sort of the two
Speaker 6: amusement parks. But I was usually going to the baseball field,
Speaker 6: so that's where I was going.
Speaker 3: I've got one more football one for you, because now
Speaker 3: that you've watched the whole staff coach for a few
Speaker 3: weeks before you were working with them draft evaluation, player acquisition,
Speaker 3: but now actually watching them on the field coaching, and
Speaker 3: this kind of ties into what happened last night. The
Speaker 3: vibe of Dimico Ryans and what he brings and the energy.
Speaker 3: What are you seeing out there on the field in
Speaker 3: that department the vibe Nick.
Speaker 6: Yeah, Well, I'd say just from a coaching perspective, it's energy,
Speaker 6: it's communication, and they're really good teachers. And so there's
Speaker 6: a lot of detail that goes into and Demiko is
Speaker 6: big on fundamentals. Focus on your fundamentals and being intentional
Speaker 6: with your movements on each play, whether it's your first step,
Speaker 6: whether it's a linebacker that initial step, how you take
Speaker 6: on a block, how your feed or position as a
Speaker 6: receiver where you're supposed to be on the route. I'd
Speaker 6: say the level of detail and coaching and focus. It's
Speaker 6: been a lot of fun to watch. We've got a
Speaker 6: good combination of some younger coaches and some veteran coaches,
Speaker 6: good clear communicators, and really what you want to do
Speaker 6: as a coach is just provide the player of the
Speaker 6: information that they need and then not over coach it.
Speaker 6: But no one, okay, will address that in the meeting
Speaker 6: room or know how to address it. So a lot
Speaker 6: of this is how you handle your players, and every
Speaker 6: coach is sort of have to learn the nuance of
Speaker 6: how the player absorbs information, how he takes the information,
Speaker 6: how does he handle adjustments, how does he handle if
Speaker 6: there's a mistake or something on the play.
Speaker 4: But the staff's worked really high.
Speaker 6: They got a great attitude, They've got a lot of
Speaker 6: energy on a day to day basis, and really starts
Speaker 6: at the top with Demiko and it kind of trickles
Speaker 6: down to the coordinators and in the position coaches. But
Speaker 6: it's been a lot of fun to work with this group.
Speaker 6: They're all a bunch of great I would say people.
Speaker 6: In addition to being you know, really good coaches.
Speaker 3: Nick, thanks a lot for being with us. Have a
Speaker 3: great summer. If we don't see it, but we're going
Speaker 3: to see you anyway. But thank you for the visit.
Speaker 4: Thank you, guys. I always appreciate it.
Speaker 2: The feeling is mutual with Nick Cassari.
Speaker 1: I love having Nick in studio, catching up before football
Speaker 1: ops essentially goes on a break. We were on a
Speaker 1: break name the show. If you can, Ah, good on you?
Speaker 5: All right?
Speaker 1: I said earlier, where are they now? Robert Smith coming
Speaker 1: up next with Drew Dory. This is gonna be some
Speaker 1: fun stuff. Stay tuned right here to Texans All Access.
Speaker 1: Maybe it's just me, but I got back to Houston
Speaker 1: in two thousand and seven, and so those years two
Speaker 1: thousand and two through two thousand.
Speaker 2: And six, I'm always intrigued.
Speaker 1: I'm always asking Mark Vandermure about those years and what
Speaker 1: happened during that time. So I always love a little
Speaker 1: where are they now with those players that didn't get
Speaker 1: a chance to see Starting in two thousand and seven,
Speaker 1: Robert Smith was one of them. He caught up with
Speaker 1: Drew Doherty for a little wat and to Texans All
Speaker 1: Access style, let's go Robert Smith or Drew Dory.
Speaker 7: Let's go, ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker 8: The great Robert Smith joins us here on where are
Speaker 8: they now? You played for the Houston Texans back in
Speaker 8: that first decade of the century. Doesn't feel it makes
Speaker 8: me feel old having to say that, because you and
Speaker 8: I are the same age. But goodness gracious, a while back,
Speaker 8: but you played here. It was an interesting time and
Speaker 8: we're gonna get into that. But Robert Smith, how you
Speaker 8: doing and where are you these days?
Speaker 5: Oh? Man, I'm doing great.
Speaker 9: I appreciate you asking me and having me on, but
Speaker 9: I'm still here out in Houston, you know, out here
Speaker 9: living with my family and joining this good Texas weather man.
Speaker 8: Yeah, indeed, Now you're like me. You've you've got five kids.
Speaker 8: You've got four kids. We both have twins. You've got
Speaker 8: You've got some kids that their chips off the old block,
Speaker 8: aren't they athletically? Because your brother in law, Travis Johnson
Speaker 8: was telling me a little bit about them about a
Speaker 8: week or so ago.
Speaker 9: Yeah, I mean they're getting there, you know, Like you said,
Speaker 9: I have two daughters that's older then I got my
Speaker 9: twins sons. Now that they're they're fifteen years old, you know,
Speaker 9: and those guys about big as me right now.
Speaker 5: So you know, it's it's just a good thing to
Speaker 5: sit back.
Speaker 9: And kind of watch them going to their own to
Speaker 9: be able to do something that they seem like they
Speaker 9: loving to do, and to be around to help, you
Speaker 9: know what I mean.
Speaker 5: So I think that's the most important part for me.
Speaker 7: Does that feel like a luxury?
Speaker 8: You know, being able to be that involved because you
Speaker 8: know a lot of us are parents, our dads, our moms.
Speaker 8: They were working and they didn't have the time that
Speaker 8: perhaps you might have right now.
Speaker 9: I mean, yeah, you know that was a big thing
Speaker 9: for me during the later parts of my career. I
Speaker 9: wasn't able to be here in Houston with them because
Speaker 9: when my daughters was growing up, once we got down
Speaker 9: here in Houston, I didn't want them traveling with me
Speaker 9: anymore because I wanted them to be stable, be in
Speaker 9: a school system, be around people that they can call friends,
Speaker 9: you know, for life. And now I got time now, well,
Speaker 9: you know, I guess since the last couple of years,
Speaker 9: I don't want to tell my age that I don't
Speaker 9: play no more.
Speaker 5: You know that I got time now.
Speaker 9: The way I can grow up, I can interact with
Speaker 9: my boys, help them with football, do some of the
Speaker 9: things with my daughters.
Speaker 5: So I mean, it's been a blessing with that.
Speaker 8: I won't give your age away because it's the same
Speaker 8: as mine, so I'll just say we're twenty nine.
Speaker 7: Yeah, keep it at that way.
Speaker 8: You're not from here. You played your college ball at
Speaker 8: Michigan State. You played in some other places in the NFL,
Speaker 8: but you decided to settle here and make Houston your home.
Speaker 5: How come?
Speaker 9: I mean, it was just like a home feeling always.
Speaker 9: Like you say, I'm originally from Flint, Michigan. I started
Speaker 9: off playing with the Tennessee Titans down there in Nashville,
Speaker 9: and then once I got here, man, from the first day,
Speaker 9: it's just felt like.
Speaker 5: Home, you know.
Speaker 9: I told my wife, we always felt like we was
Speaker 9: going to stay either on the outskirts of Michigan or
Speaker 9: down in Nashville. As soon as I got here, I
Speaker 9: told my wife, I'm like, man, I think this is
Speaker 9: where homes should be for us.
Speaker 5: You know.
Speaker 9: It was just a homey feel, a lot to do,
Speaker 9: great weather, great people, great atmosphere, you know, and I
Speaker 9: just loved it. And it's been it ain't been nothing
Speaker 9: but great since then.
Speaker 8: It's changed a lot since you decided to come to Houston,
Speaker 8: since you came to Houston, tell me about those playing
Speaker 8: days when you got here and what it was like
Speaker 8: as a Houston Texan it because it was still in
Speaker 8: the early days of the franchise.
Speaker 5: Really yeah, I mean it was great. Man. It was hot.
Speaker 5: I know that, you know hasn't changed. The first thing
Speaker 5: that's stracted with me was it was hot. But no.
Speaker 9: I came in with a couple of guys, some of
Speaker 9: them with vets and some were younger, you know, the
Speaker 9: guys like.
Speaker 5: Jamie Sharper, Kylie Wong.
Speaker 9: Those guys I actually knew before because they played with
Speaker 9: my oldest brother in Minnesota and Baltimore. So it was,
Speaker 9: you know, sort of like a little home filling with
Speaker 9: those guys. But as far as coming in, you know,
Speaker 9: we was trying to build something special at the time because,
Speaker 9: like you said, it was just getting back around down here.
Speaker 9: So it was kind of challenging, but at the same time,
Speaker 9: it was fun. You know, that's what you want as
Speaker 9: an athlete, that's what you want as a person. You
Speaker 9: wanted to have to get pushed, you want to have
Speaker 9: to try to figure some things out. And grow together.
Speaker 9: And that's what we did.
Speaker 8: Yeah, who did you find yourself linking up with and
Speaker 8: becoming friends with on this team? I know you had
Speaker 8: a lot, but who are some of the guys that
Speaker 8: back then you kind of felt a kinship with and
Speaker 8: kind of form bonds with?
Speaker 5: Gary Walker for sure?
Speaker 9: You know my brother in law, Travis Johnson for sure, Andre,
Speaker 9: Dante Robinson, Jabbar Gaffney.
Speaker 5: Corey Corey Butfer you know, Cory Sears. You know those guys.
Speaker 5: I love self pain.
Speaker 9: You know, those guys was always good guys and somebody
Speaker 9: that I click with.
Speaker 1: Just right off the bat, he listened to Robert Smith
Speaker 1: former Texan with Drew Doerdy And where are they now?
Speaker 5: Man?
Speaker 8: You just named a bunch of names and put those
Speaker 8: names in a bag, and they are a bunch of
Speaker 8: unique characters. I mean, that had to be a lot
Speaker 8: of fun. I can see why you'd be buddies with
Speaker 8: those guys.
Speaker 9: Oh yeah, you know. And and most of them are
Speaker 9: the opposite of me. You know, I'm kind of quiet,
Speaker 9: laid back. Of those guys I'll go and speak, they
Speaker 9: mind do something crazy, probably except for Andre, you know,
Speaker 9: he's just as quiet as me. You know, I think,
Speaker 9: you know, that's something that made us click like we did.
Speaker 9: But the other guys, ooh, they'd have totally opposite.
Speaker 7: I want to get it down in a moment. But
Speaker 7: since you brought them up now, I.
Speaker 8: Know you'll agree with me, and you'll agree with most
Speaker 8: of the people listening or watching this. But there are
Speaker 8: a few out there who still need to be convinced.
Speaker 8: But explain why Andre Johnson belongs in the Pro Football
Speaker 8: Hall of Fame?
Speaker 9: Oh man? The bigger question is why not? You know
Speaker 9: what I mean? What I mean, what more can he do?
Speaker 9: You know, this is a guy that basically on the
Speaker 9: offensive side of that ball, carried this team. You know,
Speaker 9: he embodies everything what the Texans wanted, what we was
Speaker 9: trying to build in the early years, seemed like what
Speaker 9: the city wants.
Speaker 5: What the statement is about.
Speaker 9: He embodies that he's a hard worker, I mean, besides
Speaker 9: him being a heck of an athlete. To me, unstoppable,
Speaker 9: you know what I mean. So the hardest question is
Speaker 9: why is he not in there? First of all, because
Speaker 9: this is given and it should be there already.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 7: I think the answer to that is just ignorance.
Speaker 8: Really, people just don't know enough because if you watched
Speaker 8: him for any amount of time, I mean, goodness, gracious, yeah.
Speaker 9: I mean you can't deny. You can't deny what he did,
Speaker 9: what you know, and what's what's for him? You know,
Speaker 9: I think it's eventually for him, Like we say, you know,
Speaker 9: I mean, you know, we feel like he should already
Speaker 9: be in there.
Speaker 5: But you can't. You can't. You can't deny what's going
Speaker 5: to happen for him. And he's going to get in there,
Speaker 5: no doubt.
Speaker 8: I can't wait when he did until he does. Hey,
Speaker 8: you brought up Travis to your brother in law. What's
Speaker 8: it like being a brother in law of Travis? Because
Speaker 8: he is a lot of fun to talk with. It
Speaker 8: seems like he knows just about everyone in the world
Speaker 8: of entertainment and sports, so on and so forth. But
Speaker 8: you got a special relationship with the guy.
Speaker 5: What's that like? Oh? Yeah, no, I mean Travis.
Speaker 9: You know, from day one, it's always been like a
Speaker 9: brother brother relationship between us. When he first came in
Speaker 9: here with me being an older player going into my
Speaker 9: fifth year, him being a rookie.
Speaker 5: You know, from the first day when he got in
Speaker 5: here of camp, he came.
Speaker 9: And sit right next to me during the meetings, you know,
Speaker 9: So we were stuck together on wantly, you know, but
Speaker 9: we ended up building a great bond from there and
Speaker 9: just always hung out. But you know, to your sense
Speaker 9: with Travis, Travis is a very smart guy, you know
Speaker 9: what I mean. He's very informative. He very smart. Like
Speaker 9: you say, he knows a lot of things. He knows
Speaker 9: a lot of people. And that's something that like a
Speaker 9: characteristic of his that I always loved about him. It
Speaker 9: ain't too much that he doesn't know, you know. He
Speaker 9: knows something about every little thing. He's a smart guy.
Speaker 9: So I mean, like you said, he got an outgoing personality.
Speaker 9: Once again, there it go. He oppositely me.
Speaker 5: So I love to be proud because I don't have
Speaker 5: to say you do nothing.
Speaker 8: Yeah, you're right about that. He is well versed in
Speaker 8: just about every subject and current event there is.
Speaker 7: So he's a.
Speaker 5: He's y likable. People love him, you know what I mean.
Speaker 5: So that's a great thing.
Speaker 8: And you're always you're probably always in good supply with
Speaker 8: cigars beating around that guy, right.
Speaker 5: Oh man, he loves him, So I let him go
Speaker 5: ahead and sponsor that.
Speaker 7: For me, it's not bad. That's not bad.
Speaker 8: Hey, memories on the field as a Texan, What were
Speaker 8: some of those for you.
Speaker 5: On the field as a Texan?
Speaker 9: Yeah, I mean I think overall that first year man
Speaker 9: when we went seven to nine, Man, you know we
Speaker 9: for you. Yeah, those first I'm not mistaken. Those first
Speaker 9: couple of games a little rocky, and then we came on.
Speaker 9: We found our rhythm for a couple of games we
Speaker 9: beat I think then a good Kansas City team, a
Speaker 9: good Titans team and uh, you know Oakland. You know,
Speaker 9: we got those guys and we just was out there.
Speaker 9: We was enjoying ourselves. We was having fun, you know,
Speaker 9: flying around and just enjoying each other out there on
Speaker 9: that field as well as off the field.
Speaker 5: So, like I said, that goes back to something earlier.
Speaker 9: We just was trying to build something special in this team,
Speaker 9: and I felt like it was coming.
Speaker 1: This is Robert Smith for ad defense lineman for the Texans,
Speaker 1: and Drew Doherty.
Speaker 2: You know where are they now?
Speaker 8: You know, it's an interesting that that season is a
Speaker 8: really interesting one because he'd had the first two o
Speaker 8: two oh three or you're an expansion franchise and not
Speaker 8: much great is going to happen, win, loss, wise when
Speaker 8: you're that young. But in December, y'all were seven and seven.
Speaker 8: I mean, you had a chance there and you were
Speaker 8: that close. It's kind of the combo of having a
Speaker 8: pretty solid defense, a good running back in Dominic Davison,
Speaker 8: you had Andre Johnson doing what he did. It was
Speaker 8: a really pretty you know, I don't want to say forgotten,
Speaker 8: but it was a kind of an underrated Texans team
Speaker 8: from the from the early days.
Speaker 9: When you agree, yeah, I would, I would definitely agree.
Speaker 9: And like you said, they was the year, maybe like
Speaker 9: a year or two before I came. That's when the
Speaker 9: franchise got back going here and guys were still trying
Speaker 9: to build them.
Speaker 5: But guys was out there strapping. Man. We had some
Speaker 5: good players.
Speaker 9: Some good bads, like you say, some good young guys
Speaker 9: and Dominique Davis, Andre Johnson, David Carr at the time,
Speaker 9: you know, young Jonathan Wells. You know, it was just
Speaker 9: like a whole bunch of different people that we had
Speaker 9: to combine together with young, old and you know some
Speaker 9: mid So I think, like you say, it's an underrated team.
Speaker 9: You know, we probably probably should get a little bit
Speaker 9: more respect.
Speaker 5: I'm quite sure. If the record was a couple more
Speaker 5: womens away, we will be getting that.
Speaker 4: We will, Yeah, no doubt.
Speaker 8: Hey, Flint, Michigan, you wind up becoming a Spartan, And
Speaker 8: it just seems so hard to believe for some out there,
Speaker 8: not for me, not for you. But before he won
Speaker 8: all those titles and pumped out all those victories as
Speaker 8: the head coach of Alabama, way back when Nick Saban
Speaker 8: was a really good head coach for the Spartans at
Speaker 8: Michigan State, what was it like playing for him there
Speaker 8: in the late nineteen nineties.
Speaker 5: I mean, it was great.
Speaker 9: I mean when I look at it, I still see
Speaker 9: the same Nick Saban, you know what I mean.
Speaker 5: He's a guy he keeps you.
Speaker 9: You gotta be you got you gotta do what you're
Speaker 9: supposed to do when you're supposed to do it, be
Speaker 9: accountable for what you're doing. And I see he still
Speaker 9: goes by a lot of them rules and a lot
Speaker 9: of things that he did at the time.
Speaker 5: But the coach Saban gonna be coach savant man.
Speaker 9: I think he got way more personality than what people
Speaker 9: gives him, you know what I mean.
Speaker 5: That's really he got points. He got times where he
Speaker 5: a fundy guy.
Speaker 9: Man, he's a jugged guy, but people don't see it.
Speaker 9: They just see, you know, Saturday or when he's talking
Speaker 9: to the media and he gets a little upset and
Speaker 9: they highlight that. But he's really a great I mean,
Speaker 9: like a real great person, you know, one of my
Speaker 9: one of my all time favorite coaches, favorite people in
Speaker 9: this world.
Speaker 8: Yeah, you bring that up and we all see externally
Speaker 8: the kind of gruff exterior. But you can't go in
Speaker 8: and recruit so many great, great players you be in
Speaker 8: one of them over the three four decades that he
Speaker 8: was a head coach, If you don't have that personality
Speaker 8: and that sense of humor like you're talking about, can
Speaker 8: you give us some just an insight into a little
Speaker 8: bit more of that, because clearly he's got that.
Speaker 9: Yeah, I mean, I think he's great because one thing
Speaker 9: about coach Saban, what you see is what you get.
Speaker 9: He's one hundred percent authentic, Like he's going to be straight.
Speaker 9: He's a straight shooter. He's going to tell you exactly
Speaker 9: how it is. What do you expect, what you can do?
Speaker 9: What is he trying to push you to? What is
Speaker 9: your goal? Him pushing you towards your goal and him
Speaker 9: making you be accountable and stick to that goal. You know,
Speaker 9: some coaches get there and they switch it up on you.
Speaker 9: He ain't that type of person.
Speaker 5: You know.
Speaker 9: He'll sit there, he'll look your parents in the eye,
Speaker 9: look you in the eye, and let you know what
Speaker 9: it is. And he sticked by what he going And
Speaker 9: it's just a look in a field that you can
Speaker 9: sense when someone is real and he's.
Speaker 5: A real dude.
Speaker 8: So with all that in mind, I'm guessing you're a
Speaker 8: big fan of guys like Henry Toto, the linebacker that
Speaker 8: the Sections drafted out of Alabama this year, as well
Speaker 8: as the clear one Will Anderson Junior, the defensive end.
Speaker 8: They obviously have a lot going for him, but to
Speaker 8: have flourished under that guy as their head coach kind
Speaker 8: of adds a little something extra, don't you think?
Speaker 5: Oh yeah, for sure, for sure.
Speaker 9: I mean, first of all, like you say, those two
Speaker 9: guys are amazing, you know what I mean, It ain't
Speaker 9: I didn't just start watching them this year. I've been
Speaker 9: watching those guys, you know, from from their first year
Speaker 9: out there. You know, I don't seen the development of
Speaker 9: you know, the guy like Will Anderson. He was one
Speaker 9: of my favorite college players period you know, the last
Speaker 9: couple of years, not just this past year, the year before,
Speaker 9: always said you can see something special in it. But
Speaker 9: like with that with coach Savan, you know, those guys
Speaker 9: are pro ready because that's what he does with his player.
Speaker 5: He gets them pro ready.
Speaker 9: You know, it'd be a lot of coaches that's there
Speaker 9: and try to do things just for a team and
Speaker 9: do this just to help they benefit them. But he
Speaker 9: gets you ready for the next level. And you gonna
Speaker 9: see that, I'm guaranteed. Then this guy Will Anderson and
Speaker 9: you know, both of them, they're gonna come out here.
Speaker 5: They're gonna shine, you know what I mean.
Speaker 9: I see they gonna be top two of the top
Speaker 9: defensive rookies out there this year.
Speaker 8: Yeah, you know, it's just a few weeks in. It's
Speaker 8: OTA's and it's May, but they both looked pretty impressive
Speaker 8: so far. And I mean, I think that's saying something
Speaker 8: a little something, don't you.
Speaker 9: Yeah, for sure, they look like they probably are already
Speaker 9: a two or three year vet out there. You know
Speaker 9: the way going because once again, like I said, that's
Speaker 9: the program he runs you. He runs a pro style,
Speaker 9: a pro style atmosphere, a pro style team, a pro
Speaker 9: style scheme.
Speaker 5: So you know, you come in those guys already.
Speaker 9: I guarantee if they started, if the game, if the
Speaker 9: if the game started next week, he would be ready
Speaker 9: and he'd be out there playing.
Speaker 8: They'd be set to go. Well, listen, you're a Hustonian.
Speaker 8: You obviously have a deep tie to this franchise. I
Speaker 8: mean you and I we were up on the deck
Speaker 8: at one of the games this year. I did the
Speaker 8: kind of the intro like, hey, everybody remember Robershman, you
Speaker 8: did this the autographs.
Speaker 7: We had fun. What were your thoughts When.
Speaker 8: The Texans signed the Miko Ryans to be head coach.
Speaker 5: Oh man, it was like a brush of fresh air breath. Man.
Speaker 9: This guy, for one, he's a very likable dude. Man,
Speaker 9: he could communicate. Miko's a good spirit, good person.
Speaker 5: You know what I mean. But he's also a true competitor,
Speaker 5: you know what I mean.
Speaker 9: It's as crazy as it might seem, like you say,
Speaker 9: like his heart is gold, but he's a he's a competitor.
Speaker 5: He's a different guy when you're out there.
Speaker 9: So I mean, with a guy like him getting an
Speaker 9: opportunity like this man, it's unbelievable.
Speaker 5: And I hope.
Speaker 9: You know, I hope, and I know he will take
Speaker 9: full advantage of this and he's gonna shine because he's,
Speaker 9: like I said, he's a good person. People like him.
Speaker 9: He's probably gonna be a player's coach. He understand the players.
Speaker 9: He understands the different walks of life with everybody. So
Speaker 9: him being that middle linebacker. They didn't just call it
Speaker 9: captain for nothing. There was a reason then, you know,
Speaker 9: even though he was younger than some of those guys
Speaker 9: calling him captain. It's amazing, man. I hope nothing but
Speaker 9: great things come for him. You know, while he's up
Speaker 9: here coaching, you.
Speaker 8: Know, he's energized the team, he's energized the offices up here,
Speaker 8: he's energized the fan base, and you know the national
Speaker 8: media has taken notice too. But one underrated aspect of
Speaker 8: folks that he has energized is you guys. The former players.
Speaker 8: You saw it on the day he was announced and
Speaker 8: when he met with the media here. There are a
Speaker 8: lot of it in the building. Some guys that didn't
Speaker 8: play with him, they played after him, or they played
Speaker 8: before him.
Speaker 7: Some player with him, but it doesn't matter who.
Speaker 8: All of those guys are pretty pumped that he is
Speaker 8: now in charge of the Texans.
Speaker 9: Oh yeah, for sure, because I mean, you know, just
Speaker 9: like me, they feel good things coming.
Speaker 5: They feel that was the right choice.
Speaker 9: They feel like he's a good step towards you know,
Speaker 9: where you want to see the team going, the atmosphere
Speaker 9: of the city. He can relate to all that. He's
Speaker 9: a winner. He done prove that. You know, he's a leader.
Speaker 9: He's for real. He understand what he's doing even when
Speaker 9: he's coaching. Look at the teams he was the coordinator of.
Speaker 9: I mean they balled out, so you can only imagine
Speaker 9: what they're gonna do when he when he's the leader
Speaker 9: of his own team, you know what I mean.
Speaker 5: And like you say, we're excited.
Speaker 1: Man.
Speaker 5: Excited That ain't even a word. Man, if it was
Speaker 5: something better, man, that's what we is.
Speaker 9: We want to see Dimico go out here because we
Speaker 9: know he gonna put his all into it. We know
Speaker 9: he gonna have those guys pumped, and we know that
Speaker 9: he gonna bring the best out of everybody.
Speaker 4: Yeah you're here.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I love it.
Speaker 7: I love it.
Speaker 8: Hey, So, other than Travis, what other former Texans do
Speaker 8: you kind of keep in touch with and are still
Speaker 8: in regular contact with oh Man.
Speaker 5: A lot of them.
Speaker 9: You know, like I said earlier, you know, me and
Speaker 9: Gary still good friends. Dante, you know, I still see
Speaker 9: dre Corey Brown for everybody, man, whether you know it
Speaker 9: or not. Man, when you come and you build those relationship,
Speaker 9: those bonds, some of them go way beyond sports.
Speaker 5: That you know from from day one.
Speaker 9: And there's a lot of those guys man, that that
Speaker 9: I still hang out with and.
Speaker 5: Kick it with.
Speaker 9: Even like when I was coming home when I went
Speaker 9: to another team. You know, the guys Ryan Dane, which
Speaker 9: is a good friend of mine. I see those guys,
Speaker 9: you know, Wade Smith around and you know, all these
Speaker 9: type of guys, Fred Weary and Milford.
Speaker 5: Brown and all those guys. Man them my guys.
Speaker 9: So we still all talking, you know, somebody, it was
Speaker 9: like we never stopped playing.
Speaker 7: That's fantastic.
Speaker 8: Well, Robert, what's next for you? Man's what's on the horizon?
Speaker 5: Man? The horizon for me? Man?
Speaker 9: Right now, Man, I'm just kind of enjoying man, watching
Speaker 9: my watching my sons grow, watching my daughters grow. Man,
Speaker 9: Because you know, those last couple of years when I
Speaker 9: wasn't here, I felt like it was a big void
Speaker 9: in my life. Now I'm filling that void with this
Speaker 9: time with them even started back then with my daughter's
Speaker 9: getting up, being able to take them to school pick
Speaker 9: them up.
Speaker 5: Man.
Speaker 9: I took pride in that, you know what I mean,
Speaker 9: because it was something that I wasn't able to do.
Speaker 9: But the next thing was that to go see them grow,
Speaker 9: get them off man, and hopefully try to find something
Speaker 9: that I just love to do it again, just as
Speaker 9: much as I did in football with my life.
Speaker 8: You know, at the words, what's fantastic to hear. Hey, Robert,
Speaker 8: we really do appreciate the time. It's great to catch
Speaker 8: up with you. Can't wait to see again at a
Speaker 8: Texans game or Texans event. Until then, man, take.
Speaker 5: Care, I'll see you at camp.
Speaker 7: Yes, sir, Yes, sir.
Speaker 2: All right. That was robertr Smith with Drew Dorian Little.
Speaker 2: Where are they now? Well? Where is he now?
Speaker 1: Well, we'll talk about that next and who is he
Speaker 1: We'll talk about that next on Texans All Access. We're
Speaker 1: gonna follow a segment this Friday, Nation of Texans All Access.
Speaker 1: I'm your host, John Harrison, Football Analyst, Sideline Report. I
Speaker 1: hope for you guys have a great weekend watching my
Speaker 1: squad Manchester City taking an inner Milan for the Champions League.
Speaker 1: This will be the trouble. They've won the Premier League,
Speaker 1: they won the FA Cup. This will be the trouble.
Speaker 1: It doesn't happen often, and so hopefully that happens on Saturday.
Speaker 2: And I'm pumped.
Speaker 1: I'm as pumped for this as I've been for any
Speaker 1: athletic contest in quite some times. So go get that trouble,
Speaker 1: man City. I will be going crazy watching it game
Speaker 1: on Saturday. Now, let's get there round in the NFL, and.
Speaker 2: Let's start on the media.
Speaker 1: NFL side with this one. One of the four following
Speaker 1: teams will be chosen for hard knocks, the New York Jets,
Speaker 1: even though Robert sala doesn't want it. The Chicago Bears
Speaker 1: could be interesting, the New Orleans Saints, and who's got
Speaker 1: joint practices with the Saints, the Washington Commanders. One of
Speaker 1: those four teams will be chosen for hard knocks. The
Speaker 1: Robert Salaz said he doesn't want.
Speaker 2: It, which means they very well.
Speaker 1: Could get it. So keep it on the Jets, Jets, Bear,
Speaker 1: Saints Commanders. Now let's go around the world. DeAndre how
Speaker 1: Hopkins style as he visited with New England and he's
Speaker 1: going to Tennessee on Sunday, And if you think about it,
Speaker 1: it makes sense. Tennessee, Tim Kelly's offensive coordinator. He's got
Speaker 1: experience with hop you know, he's gonna know the offense,
Speaker 1: the verbiage, all that kind of stuff. Hop will New
Speaker 1: England same thing. You know, it's Bill O'Brien. And look,
Speaker 1: I know there's been a lot of talk about that.
Speaker 1: I mean, I've i've probably engaged in it about you know,
Speaker 1: New England and Bill and Bill O'Brien and DeAndre Hopkins
Speaker 1: because they worked together and all that kind of stuff
Speaker 1: because obviously at the end it was not great in Houston.
Speaker 1: But time heals wounds, and so maybe that's what's happened.
Speaker 1: But New England taking a look at DeAndre Hopkins, Tennessee
Speaker 1: taking a look at DeAndre Hopkins. Those are the two
Speaker 1: that are getting visits. So we'll see what happens with DeAndre.
Speaker 1: Is Houston in the mix in that? That's a great question.
Speaker 1: I you know, obviously he went to Instagram, you know,
Speaker 1: social media the last couple of days and was you know,
Speaker 1: poking around. He lives in Houston, He's got family in Houston.
Speaker 1: I think his kids are in Houston. So there's a
Speaker 1: lot that Houston has to.
Speaker 2: To bring to DeAndre Hopkins.
Speaker 1: Does he want to be with the Texans again, that's
Speaker 1: a I don't know, that's hard to say. I mean,
Speaker 1: it seems as if there's an interest there with DeAndre Hopkins.
Speaker 1: We'll see if it's how it turns out for him.
Speaker 1: But New England, Tennessee's taken visits. Apparently he met with Texans.
Speaker 1: I guess I don't know if that was just a rumor.
Speaker 1: So well, we'll kind of leave that out for now
Speaker 1: and see where DeAndre Hopkins ends up, whether he ends
Speaker 1: up in Houston, whether he ends up playing for a.
Speaker 2: Team that Houston plays. That could be interesting. All Right,
Speaker 2: that's gonna do for the show.
Speaker 1: A big thanks to Drew, to Mark Vandermuir, and of
Speaker 1: course general manager Nick Cassari. That was a fun interview
Speaker 1: this week, as it always is. We'll see you on Monday, everybody,
Speaker 1: and as always, go Texans.