The Houston Texans rookies took the field for the first time during the team’s minicamp on Friday. The midday practice was perfect practice for the team’s regular season, as the Texans will play almost all of their games at that time.
“Not having any primetime games, that’s the one thing that we kind of look forward to,” Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans said to the media.
“One thing that I’ve learned is I’ve just looked at it as for us as a team. We have to go out and earn our right to be in those primetime moments. So it was a good opportunity for our team to go out, put our heads down, work, and prove where we belong. Excited about it.”
Following Thursday’s NFL schedule release, it was revealed only four teams would not play a primetime game in 2023: the Texans, the Colts, the Falcons, and the Cardinals.
In 2022, those teams combined for a record of 18-48-2.
Ryans, who served as defensive coordinator for the NFC finalist San Francisco 49ers last season, says he feels his team has nothing to prove to anyone outside.
“For me, it’s not about showing the NFL anything,” Ryans stated.
“It’s about us as a team just going out, working, and when you humble yourself and you work, you put your head down and work, you’re deserving of those things, then they’ll come to you. So that’s what it does for me, the internal motivation as opposed to external. We don’t have to go out and prove anything to anyone else. It’s just about who are we going to be as a team? What are we going to represent when we line up on Sundays?”
Sixteen of the Texans’ 17 kickoff times were announced. The team is currently expected to play 15 games at noon and one at 3:05 p.m.
Their 17th game time has yet to be determined.