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Houston Texans 2024 Minicamp: News, Quotes, Highlights and Observations

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The Houston Texans opened minicamp this week following team activities held last week.

Tuesday’s session provided another opportunity to see who was practicing, who was missing from the team, how the players were playing in drills and the final thoughts from head coach DeMeco Ryans and three key offensive players after training.

This was also the first opportunity for the media to speak with Stefon Diggs since his trade from the Bills to the Texans earlier this offseason.

Here are some notes, quotes and videos from the day’s events.

Houston Texans 2024 Minicamp: News, Quotes, Highlights and Observations

Who took over the practice?

The key appearance early in practice was offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil arriving in the same cart as running back Joe Mixon. While Tunsil wasn’t practicing, Mixon was suiting up and participating in practice.

Linebacker Henry To’oTo’o also returned to practice Tuesday and participated.

Defensive linemen Denico Autry and safety MJ Stewart were dressed for the session but did not practice with the team.

Andrew Beck and Kendrick Green were each recently spotted at practice, but neither participated. Today, neither was spotted as they both missed time on the field.

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Who hasn’t practiced?

  • LT Laremy Tunsil
  • RT Tytus Howard
  • OG LaDarius Henderson
  • C/G Kendrick Green
  • Andrew Beck
  • WR Noah Brown
  • WR Jaxon Janke
  • BY Ali Gaye
  • DT Folorunso Fatukasi
  • Dylan Horton
  • DT Khalil Davis
  • CB Kris Boyd
  • S MJ Stewart
  • CB D’Angelo Ross

Best Texans highlights from minicamp

Derek Stingley Jr. pass breakup

During one of the day’s drills, Stroud stepped in at quarterback with cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. and receiver Stefon Diggs. The veteran Diggs planted hard and rushed to the outside as Stingley mirrored the plant-and-go to stay within range of Diggs. Stingley closes and gets the pass breakup.

Stroud’s ball placement allowed Stingley Jr. to break away from Diggs, but it was still great coverage. Stroud is still acclimating to Diggs. By the first week of the season, he will know how Diggs runs off routes and throws with anticipation and precise ball location.

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CJ Henderson interception

Cornerback CJ Henderson was in coverage against receiver Xavier Hutchinson when quarterback Davis Mills made a poor pass attempt. Henderson provided a cushion, dropped and read Mills the entire play.

Mills threw the attempt short and brought it back inside. You’d like to see Hutchinson make a better attempt at separating the corner and the ball, especially with the GM just a few feet away and watching intently. However, playing it safe is not Hutchinson’s job and the turnover falls squarely on Mills’ shoulder. That said, I wouldn’t get too carried away with one piece.

As for Henderson, it’s great to see him doing exactly what they hope he can do this year. He will be asked to use his speed to stay close to receivers and his length to secure PBUs or INTs. That’s a promising sign, especially without the benefit of a pass rush.

Top Texan Quotes from Minicamp

WR John Metchie III

Stroud congratulated Metchie during a preliminary press conference this year. Today, not only did Stroud do it again, but so did DeMeco Ryans and Tank Dell. The offseason work has paid off as Stroud appears locked in with Metchie III.

Metchie III has overcome so much in his short career. It’s good to see him flying consistently in every practice. He seems to do everything at full speed and with enthusiasm. From afar, he practiced this offseason like a man who had gone blind but is now seeing for the first time.

The full-speed practices and passion displayed by the third-year receiver resemble that of a man who doesn’t take a game, a day or anything else for granted. He seeks to do everything 100%, every play and he is grateful to be able to do that.

On Metchie, Stroud had this to say Tuesday: “As you can see, he runs some of the best routes I’ve ever seen. His lateral quickness, his ability to start and stop. When a quarterback who played with receivers of Stroud’s caliber in college and in the pros says a guy is running some of the best routes he’s seen, you take notice. He praised Metchie all offseason. I would listen to it.

When Dell spoke, he was asked about the adversity he and Metchie had faced and whether he was able to lean on him in his recovery process. He responded by saying, “Yeah, Metchie, that’s my guy. Me and Metchie are getting closer. Me, Metchie and CJ, of course, we all have in-depth discussions.

Dell would expand on Metchie saying, “Like what he experienced, life is bigger than a bullet, but that’s what we want to do for sure, but like when he had his experience with cancer and things like that, he was just telling me that it opened his eyes a lot more and when I just had that experience and it opened my eyes, like I want to go where I want to go, I have to cut things out of my life, so that I can achieve what I want to want to do.”

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He finished his comments about Metchie by talking about what his friend did on the field. “He’s doing great, I know you’ve been watching him, but he’s done a lot of work, he’s ready to rock, he’s ready to roll. He smiles every day, it’s funny, he’s ready to go to work.

DeMeco Ryans and Tank Dell on Stroud

When Ryans spoke to the media, he was asked about Stroud’s growth.

“Seeing him today and the offense wasn’t going great and seeing him shut down, trying to get all the guys together, calm them down,” Ryans said. “From year one to year two, you didn’t see last year from CJ and that’s what you like to see from your quarterback.

Dell also spoke about Stroud’s development as a leader in 2024.

“He’s definitely taken on that leadership role a lot more than last year,” Dell said. “Last year, don’t get me wrong, he was a great leader, but now you can see, like any mistake in training, he’s on us.

Stroud’s endorsement is to be expected, but it’s still great to hear the real-life account of growth on a daily basis. These weren’t rhetorical responses about growing a guy. These are specific areas, still recent today, in which he has proven that he is ready to go further. Ryans said it perfectly, this is what you want to see from the second-year franchise quarterback.

CJ Stroud on himself

Stroud talked about his own growth in year two and controlling the offense.

“It’s day and night,” he said. “Really, I feel like I’m running the show. I’ve got a lot more responsibility from Slow (offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik), DeMeco, Jerrod (quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson), Bill , really of our entire offensive team I am the captain of the ship.

Stroud then continued to self-enlighten by saying, “From last year to this year, I got a lot better at controlling my emotions, controlling my ball placement, knowing what is ‘NFL open.’ , knowing my footwork better.”

He finished by praising his coach for preparing him for practice: “On the other side of the ball, everything slowed down, seeing the coverage. DeMeco does a good job blitzing me, working on different covers or different looks.

Stroud gave some examples of Ryans mixing things up on him in practice: “Start two high, go to one, back to two. Motion like it’s dude, go to the second cover, all to keep me real and honest.

Stroud seems comfortable with the expectations and has done everything in year two to make sure he isn’t the reason they fail. After what he showed as a rookie, it’s scary to imagine what Stroud could do in the improved version of the 2024 offense with him a year better.

Other key pieces of the day

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