NICK CASERIO: Real quick, on behalf of both of us, we want to thank the respective staff for the work that they put in. The coaching staff, the scouting staff, football operations staff, people that are involved in the process. I mean, we wouldn't say it was seamless, but it's pretty seamless.
Just the knowledge, the preparedness, the communication. We operate and function as a unit and that's how we built the program, and everything we do is about the team, and there's no better example of that than the draft and the weekend and the process that we went through.
On behalf of both of us, we wouldn't be able to do this without the staff. They're as big a part of that as anybody. They're a big reason why we're in the position that we're in.
If you guys want to just go ahead and just start with some questions and then kind of go through the day and go from there.
Q. How good do you feel about being able to get a player, McDonald's caliber in the second round?
DEMECO RYANS: McDonald is a guy we all like. Scouts, coaches, everybody, collective group, everybody liked the talent. Young player, but he's grown. He shows the strength in the run game. He shows the ability to get off blocks and finish.
We're very excited to add a young defensive tackle to that room, and I know he'll flourish with the guys that he'll be learning from.
Q. Both sides of the football, you always want to build in the trenches and be strong in there at the line of scrimmage. With the first two picks, how much do you feel like you'll have really competitive practices with those guys locked up and with your vets adding to that mix?
DEMECO RYANS: Yeah, we've added really talented guys that are competitors. They are physical guys, so we know it's going -- we've improved our team today, and that's what you want to do in a draft. You want to improve your roster with a ton of competitive guys. That's what we did today.
So I'm excited to see these guys get here, get assimilated to how we do things, and see them go out and compete. It will be fun.
Q. DeMeco, you often talk about guys that do it the right way. There are other things outside of the scout in terms of physical ability. It seems like with the little bit of interaction we had, got a group (indiscernible.)
DEMECO RYANS: You guys have all noticed that they're our type of guys. They're football-first guys, high-character guys, guys who just love playing football, guys, big smiles, big energy guys. They're going to fit right into our locker room, right?
Not just the person, but we feel like we got really good football players as well. It always starts with the film first and having great character; great men on top of that makes it even better. We got that in all the guys that we have chosen.
Q. You mentioned that last night there were guys that you all wanted to draft at 91 that you felt were going to be discussed at 106. Were you able to get those guys...
NICK CASERIO: Yeah, I mean, really the first two picks of the day with Febechi and Woodaz. With Febechi we sat there and picked at 106. We felt that was the best thing. You started to actually see a little bit of a run on the offensive line there at the top of the round.
And then Woodaz was a player where we kind of just moved back there a few spots, and we felt like just going back a few, grab a pick, we would still be able to get him at 123 or wherever we ended up picking him.
To DeMeco's point, talking about some of the earlier players, those were two players that we had conviction, like, collectively. Coaching staff had a vision and a role for them. Frank relative to Woodaz also had a vision and a role when you combine the two.
That's why we talk through all these scenarios and all these situations, because we're trying to fit players. You get the players here that fit what we're doing, and the coaches and the staff have a vision for the player. We're never going to square peg a round hole player regardless of what somebody might think.
In the end we'll talk about it. If it makes sense, we'll try to make it work, but obviously those two players were examples of players we were talking about yesterday that happened to be available today, and we were able to add them to the team today.
Q. The camera caught you (regarding fist pump - Febechi). What did you like about him?
DEMECO RYANS: I'm pumping my fist on every -- the camera only got that one? Come on, Omar. We missed out on all the good stuff. Good action (laughing).
No, that's the only one you saw. Well, that reaction was for each and every pick. I love them all.
No, Febechi, but like the player. Very smart player. Can play multiple positions. He played guard, played some center. So having that flexibility at the interior of our offensive line, we're excited about him.
Q. When you get a guy like him, he talked about a good line, about wanting to be your star, like you're that hungry. What did you see from him as far as mental makeup and having to earn it all the way through high school to where he is now?
NICK CASERIO: He got really good. Not necessarily transfer up, but kind of transferred up. Started at one program and then elevated to another program. I thought his mentality, his leadership, just his overall presence. He's a great kid. He's very smart. Takes coaching.
You kind of look at his story and his journey, like he's made himself into the player that he is, and then our job is to make him a better player relative to where he is right now. So great human being. Like, we had him in the building. Has some leadership qualities. Has some toughness.
I mean, he's sturdy as hell. He's thick. He's really, really strong. He has the right makeup and the right mindset. He has a good spirit about him.
Q. I know this is just the beginning, but all the work that goes into it and being able to have your board, your kind of wish list getting what you want, can you talk about what that feels like to be taking the next step as you move forward?
NICK CASERIO: We go into this, we both kind of have a list of players, and then we kind of match it up and say, hey, if we have the opportunity to add these players to our team, then, you know, it would be great for the overall organization and what we're trying to do.
We were able to do that here today. I mean, this is one snapshot, so now we'll kind of pivot and kind of take inventory. All right, here's where we are today. Probably some things that will happen here this afternoon after the draft, work through on draft through free agency, and then there's still another grouping of players that are out there that are available.
We'll kind of evaluate our team, where are we? Can we upgrade some spots? Even if we have a player there currently, maybe me replace them with another option.
It's pretty fluid here. Obviously there's a lot of work and time that goes into this from everybody, but by the same token, we're in the offseason program. We're kind of in phase one, and we're going to eventually transition to phase two where the players will actually get on the field with the staff, and then we'll kind of keep track of what's going on league-wide.
There will probably be some attrition from the draft, players that were drafted probably created spots or other opportunities where players kind of get knocked out, and then we'll look to see if there's somebody out there that makes sense for us.
Q. By the time that -- once the season is done and you get with the scouting team, how much studying do you have to put into, especially with the amount of players that there is in the draft and also at the same time get prepared for the next season?
DEMECO RYANS: There is no offseason (laughing). It turns right into draft preparation really starting at the combine. It was really cool. I think one of the first interviews I had at the combine was Marlin. That was a really cool moment for us to be able to get. I really liked the tape from my initial watch of him and to be able to get him. It's an ongoing process. My studying never stops.
Like I'm still watching guys today trying to make sure, you know, we're correct on the guys that we're taking, and we all like the guys. So that process never ends up until we have to take the pick.
It's been a thorough process, but my process is sped up by the staff. Like, our scouting department, they lay so much groundwork that I get a head start. When I do begin to watch guys, I know who to watch. I know what areas to look for. They do an outstanding job of prepping me for that.
Q. Then you have -- you draft some players that come -- some players at that position. How exciting is it for you as a former player and a coach to get excited about getting ready to watch the type of competition out there?
DEMECO RYANS: Football is all about competition. Look, and that's why you add these young guys. We already have a really good team, and we had the opportunity over the past couple of days to add some really talented young men that are going to come in and compete.
Man, competition only makes everyone better, and that's what we're going to see.
We're going to see our football team improve once these guys get on the field, because they have to raise their level of play to go earn a spot. That's what we're going to love to see. We're going to have some really good battles in training camp, and I can't wait to watch them.
Q. Nick, when it comes to Lewis Bond, what did you hear from the Boston College staff and Bill O'Brien? What did you hear on him?
NICK CASERIO: Yeah, really smart. Really instinctive. Good ball skills. Kind of finds a way to get open. Very productive with his opportunities.
I thought as a player that Coach McDaniels spent time with in the spring on the Zoom. He said it was one of the smartest players that he ever talked to as a part of this process, and you see that in his play.
Very dependable. He's in the right spot. Good football player. I would say he has football player traits. You might look at the card and the measurables and say he's a little slower, a little shorter, but he produced consecutively for multiple years.
Obviously played in kind of an NFL-style offense, and Coach O'Brien's system. So some of things will carry over. Some of the things will be different. You saw a lot of good things on tape, and that was a player as we kind of worked through today on Saturday we were talking, and, hey, what do you think? Yeah, we like him. We both liked the player. Ben liked the player.
All right, if we have the opportunity to add him to the team, let's figure it out, which is why we made the pick that we did in the sixth round.
Q. This is sort of like Christmas for y'all. You got your presents under the tree. You pull them out. Now you start to take them out and start to play with them now. You start to see how the shine comes out and the chrome. Just talk about moving from here.
DEMECO RYANS: Moving forward in two weeks we'll have our rookie mini-camp, and most of the guys will be able to come in and participate. We'll see the guys on the field, and that's the exciting time to see guys actually out working with coaches.
As coaches, we get really fired up about that first watch, that first opportunity to get the guys in the Texans uniform, to get them on the grass. You know, we're excited about it. When you've watched the tape, you have spent a lot of time getting to know these guys, and our coaches have already built really great relationship with these guys by Zooming them, 30 visits.
So it will be even more exciting once we hit the grass and we can get done with this.
Q. (Indiscernible). What kind of goes into that evolution from the philosophy regarding (indiscernible) and keeping up with the trends?
DEMECO RYANS: Kayden is a great football player. For me we've had success with smaller defensive linemen. That doesn't necessarily mean that that was what we were looking for all the time. I've worked with some really good coaches who were able to get the best out of players and the traits that they possess.
Those smaller guys, explosive traits, they were able to knock back. We've seen where you start to lose some in the run game, so you get a guy like Kayden who is not only just a big body, but he is an explosive guy. He has the twitch. He has the explosiveness, and his stop versus the run, that's a bonafide defensive tackle that's going to impact our defense in a major way.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports