Jalen Pitre 'Loves Playing' With Jimmie Ward in Texans Defense

Jalen Pitre and Jimmie Ward could be a dynamic duo for the Houston Texans.

Matt Galatzan | Jul 31, 2023

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Houston Texans

Houston Texans safety Jalen Pitre burst on the scene in his debut season, finishing the year as a defensive rookie of the year candidate.

Now, he is looking into year two of his career, with hopes that he can take a big step forward, into Pro Bowl and All-Pro consideration.

But given his youth, surrounding a talent like Pitre's with veteran leadership can pay major dividends. And that is exactly what the Texans did this offseason by signing safety, Jimmie Ward.

“A great tandem,” Pitre said of him and Ward. “When I can go out there and play with somebody that’s that good and plays with his hair on fire – a guy that wants to hit."

Like Pitre showed in his rookie season, he is a big fan of contact - something that Ward was known for during his days in San Francisco under DeMeco Ryans.

And that is exactly the kind of mentality that Pitre wants to bring to the Texans' secondary in 2023.

"I love guys that don’t shy away from contact," Pitre said. "Things like that are inspiring to me because I’m always trying to push him, and he’s always trying to push me. It’s always growth in that. I’m blessed to be able to play with him.”

Now, the pair of hard hitters are united in Houston under the tutelage of Ryans, and looking to strike lead by example for the rest of the defense.

“It’s all about running to the ball and being mean when you get there,” Pitre said. “I think Coach DeMeco [Ryans] preaches that. He wants us all to be aggressive, so I’m going to continue to do that, continue to try to be the first one to the ball.”

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Published Jul 31, 2023

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan the Editor-In-Chief of TexansDaily.com. Galatzan graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry under Mike Fisher at DallasBasketball.com in 2014, which at the time was part of the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com on the 247Sports network. When DallasBasketball.com and CowboysCountry.com moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, Galatzan followed suit, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com and AllAggies.com a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, former Longhorns players Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, and many other recruits, and current/former players for each of the teams he has covered. Galatzan is also a full-time employee in the digital media department for Audacy and KRLD FM's 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, which is the official radio home of the Dallas Cowboys. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels. For any inquiries, please email matt.galatzan@gmail.com