Duane Brown is coming home.
Sort of.
The left tackle was a standout football and basketball star at Hermitage High School in Richmond, Virginia in the early 2000's.
This August, though, he'll get to practice in his hometown, as the Texans will go through drills for three days with Washington. The three-time Pro Bowler is excited to get home during a time of year he's normally working at NRG Stadium and the Houston Methodist Training Center.
"I don't get to get back in that area often to play at all, so being in my backyard and practicing against Washington, it's a good opportunity for a lot of my family and close friends to come out and kind of check me out, check us out as a team in a competitive environment," Brown said. "I'm looking forward to it."
The Texans practiced with the Falcons in Houston, and the Broncos in Denver last August. They wound up playing both teams during the preseason. While they won't square off against Washington in a game, Brown is excited about the chance to get work done versus unfamiliar faces.
"It just breaks up the monotonous feeling of going against the same defense, the same personnel every day, against each other," Brown said. "Going against another team, different players, someone you're not as familiar with, in a competitive environment is very important and it just keeps everyone on our toes. You have a lot of different looks that you're not prepared for that you don't see on an every down basis for all facets, offense, defense and special teams."
Brown smiled when he was asked about what sort of crowd will be on hand to root for him, and said he'd already texted his mother and more family and friends from the area.
The two franchises will work against each other from August 6-8 at Washington's training center, which opened in 2013.
Take a look at photos from the Houston Texans' third week of OTAs.
