Texans GM Nick Caserio hopes rookie minicamp lays proper foundation for the team
The Houston Texans will welcome nine rookies to their roster ahead of the 2021 NFL season.
Under first-year general manager, Nick Caserio, the Texans drafted five college prospects and signed four undrafted free agents. Rookie minicamp will begin on Friday, May 17.
Caserio says this will be an opportunity to begin laying a foundation in place for the Texans’ incoming newcomers.
“The expectation is just let’s have a good Friday,” Caserio said during the Texans’ Charity Golf Classic on Monday. “The big thing is giving them a foundation about our program and then ultimately just getting ready for training camp. That’s really the next true test of what we’re actually going to see relative to football.”
The most polarizing rookie entering camp on Friday is former Stanford quarterback Davis Mills. The Texans drafted Mills with their 67th overall pick to add to their perplexing quarterback situation. Mills will be a project quarterback expected to take the role as a rookie understudy amid learning behind Tyrod Taylor and Ryan Finley this season.
“You’ve got to be careful going out there watching one throw and making a judgment off of like, ‘guy made a great throw, he looked good today’,” Caserio said. “It’s about stacking days on top of each other and just having a good series of days, weeks and months. And then by the end of let’s call it minicamp, they actually have something in place to feel confident so when they go out there in training camp, they can actually go out there and perform at whatever capacity they can.”
In addition to the Texans beginning rookie minicamp, phase II of the NFL’s offseason program will also begin on Friday. The second of four phases will allow head coaches to take part in on-field workouts with players, which was forbidden during phase I.
