Every-Thing Sports
Texans 180 on social justice: What it could mean for their future
Jun 9, 2020, 8:53 am
Photo by Getty Images.
The Texans have been notoriously conservative throughout their history. The term "Texan worthy" was attributed to their penchant for drafting and/or signing players who fit their Boy Scout mold. That outlook led to one of the team's most controversial moments. October 2017: Bob McNair was caught saying "We can't have inmates running the prison" referring to players taking a knee in protest of the National Anthem. This was also after his negative comments about President Obama being elected in 2008. Both rubbed players the wrong way. Both gave this organization a bad rep in players' eyes. Both could've set them back. Luckily, neither caused irreparable damage.
Flash forward to the events surrounding George Floyd's death, and it seems as if this once socially conservative franchise has done a complete 180-degree turn. Not only did Bill O'Brien and Cal McNair each make statements, but Cal also hosted former Texans' player Travis Johnson in a roundtable discussion with his wife Hannah and mom Janice about race relations. This was the first episode in what's titled "Conversations For Change." Things like this will go a long way. Here's how I think it could help:
Cover-up for past transgressions
If any of you have had a bad tattoo, you know what it's like. It doesn't look right. You feel like an idiot, and wish it wasn't there. However, the cover-up tattoo is better than the original in most cases. Bob McNair's comments sort of passed away when he did. When O'Brien started making personnel moves based off personality, most notably the DeAndre Hopkins deal, it looked as if things were status quo as far as having "Texans worthy" players. Given their signings and trades for players who actively work towards and protest social injustice, this could be one of the better cover-up tattoo jobs I've seen recently.
Help keep Deshaun Watson
Deshaun Watson is so critical to this franchise's future. He now has them bent over a tree stump and ready to take it when it comes to him resigning his contract extension. Is he going to sign a mega deal? Yes. Will the recent events and how the franchise reacted to it have some influence? Possibly. I think Watson will take this into consideration, but it won't have a major impact on how his deal is structured. If anything, it'll sway things slightly and get him to the table sooner.
Future draft picks and free agents
The fact that O'Brien said he's talked to Kenny Stills (long time kneeling protester), Michael Thomas (newly signed protester), and others about the recent events gives him some leeway when it comes to player relations. Given his past transgressions, as well as this franchise's, this will go a long way towards endearing himself to future acquisitions. Guys will know they're coming into a franchise that will support their freedom to express themselves and continue to support their ideals after their careers are over given the platform the McNairs created with Travis Johnson in the "Conversations For Change" series.\
Honestly, as a black man with two teenage kids, this makes me feel as if the upper crust of society actually cares and will do something to help spur on change. O'Brien's honesty from the heart was refreshing. Cal's statement seemed more scripted, but the episode he, his wife, and mom recorded with Johnson felt more real and raw. The Texans have taken a more proactive approach. I don't recall too many other NFL owners taking this type of approach in recent weeks, which given previous history, has made what the Texans are doing very much appreciated. I can't wait to see how this plays out in the near future.
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There was a conversation Cleveland guard Donovan Mitchell had during training camp, the topic being all the teams that were generating the most preseason buzz in the Eastern Conference. Boston was coming off an NBA championship. New York got Karl-Anthony Towns. Philadelphia added Paul George.
The Cavs? Not a big topic in early October. And Mitchell fully understood why.
“What have we done?” Mitchell asked. “They don't talk about us. That's fine. We'll just hold ourselves to our standard.”
That approach seems to be working.
For the first time in 36 seasons — yes, even before the LeBron James eras in Cleveland — the Cavaliers are atop the NBA at the 25-game mark. They're 21-4, having come back to earth a bit following a 15-0 start but still better than anyone in the league at this point.
“We've kept our standards pretty high,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said. “And we keep it going.”
The Cavs are just one of the surprise stories that have emerged as the season nears the one-third-done mark. Orlando — the only team still unbeaten at home — is off to its best start in 16 years at 17-9 and having done most of that without All-Star forward Paolo Banchero. And Houston is 16-8, behind only the Cavs, Boston, Oklahoma City and Memphis so far in the race for the league's best record.
Cleveland was a playoff team a year ago, as was Orlando. And the Rockets planted seeds for improvement last year as well; an 11-game winning streak late in the season fueled a push where they finished 41-41 in a major step forward after a few years of rebuilding.
“We kind of set that foundation last year to compete with everybody,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. “Obviously, we had some ups and downs with winning and losing streaks at times, but to finish the season the way we did, getting to .500, 11-game winning streak and some close losses against high-level playoff teams, I think we kind of proved that to ourselves last year that that's who we're going to be.”
A sign of the respect the Rockets are getting: Oddsmakers at BetMGM Scorebook have made them a favorite in 17 of 24 games so far this season, after favoring them only 30 times in 82 games last season.
“Based on coaches, players, GMs, people that we all know what they're saying, it seems like everybody else is taking notice as well,” Udoka said.
They're taking notice of Orlando as well. The Magic lost their best player and haven't skipped a beat.
Banchero's injury after five games figured to doom Orlando for a while, and the Magic went 0-4 immediately after he tore his oblique. Entering Tuesday, they're 14-3 since — and now have to regroup yet again. Franz Wagner stepped into the best-player-on-team role when Banchero got hurt, and now Wagner is going to miss several weeks with the exact same injury.
Ask Magic coach Jamahl Mosley how the team has persevered, and he'll quickly credit everyone but himself. Around the league, it's Mosley getting a ton of the credit — and rightly so — for what Orlando is doing.
“I think that has to do a lot with Mose. ... I have known him a long time,” Phoenix guard Bradley Beal said. “A huge fan of his and what he is doing. It is a testament to him and the way they’ve built this team.”
The Magic know better than most how good Cleveland is, and vice versa. The teams went seven games in an Eastern Conference first-round series last spring, the Cavs winning the finale at home to advance to Round 2.
Atkinson was brought in by Cleveland to try and turn good into great. The job isn't anywhere near finished — nobody is raising any banners for “best record after 25 games” — but Atkinson realized fairly early that this Cavs team has serious potential.
“We’re so caught up in like the process of improve, improve, improve each game, improve each practice," Atkinson said. “That’s kind of my philosophy. But then you hit 10-0, and obviously the media starts talking and all that, and you’re like, ‘Man, this could be something special brewing here.’”