DeMeco Ryans Puts Texans on Notice After Player Makes Telling Revelation

DeMeco Ryans opened his postgame press conference following the Houston Texans’ win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 10, saying, “It’s not about us and praising us for what we do. It’s all glory to God.

Ryans carried a “heavy heart” into the contest, losing his best friend and former Texans teammate Earl Cochran, who died on October 31.

Ryans said he was “thankful” for the win and knew Cochran was “smiling down” and “proud.”

Texans HC DeMeco Ryans Issues Clear Notice After Comeback Win

GettyHouston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans celebrates after defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Ryans made several boxing references during his postgame press conference, touting the keys to victory and pointing out what had been a missing ingredient for them.

“The key for our entire game today is, you know, no one blinked. I talked to the guys last night about this – it’s going to be a heavyweight fight. And we got to keep throwing punches, no matter how it looks. It may look rough. Yeah, it doesn’t matter. I didn’t want anybody to blink. I wanted everybody to continue to press forward, to keep punching, right?” Ryans told reporters on November 9

“That’s what they did, coming out in the second half like it’s the best second half we’ve had because we played complementary football. Everything that could go wrong went wrong as soon as the game started. And so, for us to battle and have that resilience, that’s what good football looks like. That’s what we’ve been missing.”

Ryans said he told the team they had “been in this situation before.”

One of those players, team captain and linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, revealed Ryans showed the Texans an old boxing match the night before the game. Next up is the film from this game.

“This game, all right, should do a lot when guys watch the film, and they can see the things we can even clean up in this game where we weren’t clean or bad things happen. And I just look at the game as I look at life. It’s like, bad things are going to happen. Do you hang your head and go run and hide? Do you quit, do you give up? No. You got to keep punching in life. In football, you got to keep punching,” Ryans said.

“That’s what this game showed today. Man, you just have to keep playing with heart, playing with resilience. And, hopefully, the film shows our guys proof that we can battle and win in any type of game.”

The payoff made Ryans proud.

DeMeco Ryans’ ‘Heart Full’ After Texans’ Comeback Win

GettyHouston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans, Sheldon Rankins #90, and Azeez Al-Shaair #0 celebrate their 36-29 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Ryans has been part of the two largest comebacks in Texans history, and this one left him with an even greater sense of pride in his team. The third-year head coach said his “heart is full” and that he was “so proud” of his players and staff.

While he felt they did good things throughout the day, they found the “belief” and “resilience” needed to eke out the victory.

Ryans’ message all week ahead of the game?

“Just to make sure we’re all in this thing together. No matter how the game looks, everybody just stick together. Continue to bring positive energy, right? And we finished with the knockout punch there at the end that we needed,” Ryans said.

“I’m gonna relish in this moment, and love this moment for how our team battled, right? And yes, I hope it’s a springboard for us, moving throughout the season, that we continue to see that, ‘You guys, you can. It doesn’t matter, right, what the scoreboard looks like. It’s about how you execute, how you finish, how you play together, and how you have that belief in one another and in yourself, right, to go out and finish games like this.”

Sunday’s win was the Texans’ first in a one-score game this season. They are 1-5 in those situations, heading into Week 11 against the Tennessee Titans.

DeMeco Ryans Opens Up About Childhood Friend Earl Cochran

GettyEarl Cochran #96 of the Houston Texans during a game against the Baltimore Ravens.

The Texans remembered Cochran during Sunday’s contest, and Ryans reflected on the person with whom he grew up in Alabama before they became teammates in the NFL.

“Just a standup guy,” Ryans said. “Close friend. Loving. Caring. Big heart. Give the shirt off his back to anybody. He just treated people the right way. Loved people. Always had a big smile. Big heart. Very wise. So, I’m just thankful to have had him as a friend here.”

Cochran joined the Texans as an undrafted free agent out of Alabama State.

He played three seasons for the organization from 2006 through 2008 and worked as defensive line coach at Prairie View A&M before his death.

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