Texans Receive First Lessons Amid Day 1 of Rookie Minicamp

First-year prospects received their initial lessons during Day 1 of rookie minicamp with the Houston Texans, from learning the team's culture to getting adjusted to the city's humidity.

Coty M. Davis | May 10, 2024

Texans rookie defensive back Kamari Lassiter / Brian Barefield of Big Sarge Media LLC

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With their notebook and pen in hand, coach DeMeco Ryans said each rookie prospect looked like a student on the first day of school. Ryans' initial lesson for the class of 2024 was to learn the Houston Texans' culture during the first day of rookie minicamp.

He introduced the lecture by presenting a picture of Will Anderson Jr., who helped establish the Texans' standard and foundation amid his first season in 2023.

"If you guys want to understand our culture and what we are about, just follow No. 51 [Anderson]," Ryans said. "It's not me saying it with words. Just watch the way No. 51 works."

READ MORE: Texans Rookie Minicamp Preview

Learning the team's culture was one of several lessons Ryans instilled during the first day of camp. Once rookie camp moved from the meeting room to the practice fields of the Houston Methodist Training Center, Ryans' message to the team was to have patience and not be afraid to make mistakes.

Watching prospects learn and grow from their mistakes excites Ryans. He identifies teaching as one of the primary attributes of his coaching intangibles. However, he doesn't encourage players to get comfortable with their blunders.

"A lot of players I’ve coached, I remember their day one and how they started, and to see where they are now and in their careers," Ryans said. "That’s the realistic approach for the rookies is just to sit back and watch them grow. As I told the guys when I broke it down today, ‘This is day one where you’re expected to make mistakes. Now, it’s all about the next day. We can’t come out and make the same mistakes again, let’s continue to progress."

Learning and growing from their Day 1 mistakes was Ryans' lone expectation for the rookie class, headlined by top draft prospect Kamari Lassiter.

Returning to the practice field thrilled Lassiter, while Ryans' approach left a great first impression on the defensive back — who quickly picked up on the team's culture.

Lassiter had his first "wow moment" while taking a water break. As he glanced across the field, Lassiter realized his dream of playing football on a professional level had come true.

"You can really tell he [Ryans] loves what he does — you can tell his passion for the game, his passion for his players and his passion for his team," Lassiter said.

"This is a high culture program as well. The standard is the standard here. You have a bunch of guys who want to get better, a bunch of guys who have the right mentality, the right mindset – a group of guys who really just want to win."

Rookies Calen Bullock (no. 41) & Kamari Lassiter (no. 14). #Texans rookie minicamp. pic.twitter.com/wRmGXlt38E
— Coty M. Davis (@CotyDavis_24) May 10, 2024

Learning is the top priority of rookie minicamp in Houston. It's the phase where all first-year players learn the Texans' terminology and expectations.

Ryans wanted to wait to evaluate any prospect after the first day of practice. However, getting adjusted to Houston's climate was the first feedback Ryans had for his rookie class.

Lassiter, who played three years at Georgia, said he checked the weather before taking the field. He felt fine at the time, given that his phone read 80 degrees. However, once practice began, Lassiter quickly realized that Houston's humidity makes 80 degrees feel more like 90 — or a bit hotter.

"That’s the one biggest hurdle that we have here in Houston, where guys have to overcome that heat — that’s a real thing," Ryans said. "I was telling one of the guys out there who may have been struggling a little bit. I said, ‘How long have you been playing football?’ Since you were six, seven, eight years old. The game of football hasn’t changed.

"You’re still playing with the same guys you played with, just on a different level. And once you put that into your mind — that the game hasn’t changed, it’s still football — go attack it the same way and do the things that allowed you to get to this spot. You continue to do that."

READ MORE: Texans Rookie Minicamp Preview

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