NFL makes decision on Texans' Cal McNair

A key figure with the Texans over the past several years, Cal McNair will transition from CEO to an official ownership title. The NFL approved McNair as the team’s principal owner Tuesday.

Cal’s mother, Janice McNair, had been in place as principal owner since her husband Bob McNair’s 2018 death. Janice is now 87. Bob McNair founded the expansion franchise, which debuted in 2002. Cal McNair, 62, has been in place as the team’s top decision-maker since his father’s death, being the team’s representative at owners meetings. But he will have an official ownership title moving forward.

“It’s an exciting time to be a Houston Texan and I’m honored to lead this franchise,” Cal McNair said, per the team's official website. “This move ensures the long-term stability of our franchise, and we will continue to operate the way we have been over the last couple years, pursuing a championship for the city of Houston while doing great things in the community and for our fans.”

The period since Bob McNair’s death has been an eventful one for the NFL’s newest franchise. The Texans are 31-51-1 since Bob McNair’s death. After a power struggle led to Bill O’Brien eventually moving into a head coach/GM dual role in 2019 — with Brian Gaine fired barely a year after landing the job — the Texans made a host of interesting moves. The events coming out of the O’Brien period have been the most impactful, however.

Deshaun Watson requested a trade months after being given an extension, citing issues with Cal McNair’s hiring of Nick Caserio as GM. This soon became a subplot, as it came to light that the former Pro Bowl quarterback was facing allegations of sexual misconduct and/or sexual assault by dozens of massage therapists. Thirty women sued the Texans as well. The Texans had given Watson a Houstonian hotel and spa membership and helped arrange nondisclosure agreements for their then-quarterback; the lawsuit said the team enabled him. The team settled the suits, which emerged months after the Watson trade brought back three first-round picks from the Browns.

That Caserio-overseen process helped lead to the C.J. Stroud selection, which has revitalized the Texans after they had fired HCs (O’Brien, David Culley, Lovie Smith) in three straight years. The Texans will go into 2024 with significantly higher expectations compared to previous years, and while this has not been an especially stable period for the organization, its Caserio-Stroud-DeMeco Ryans foundation does appear pointed in the right direction.