The way Brock Osweiler describes it, Montana is picturesque this time of year.
"Northwest Montana, Kalispell, and then north Idaho over in Coeur d'Alene where I was born, it's so beautiful," Osweiler said in his Wednesday press conference. "For those of you that haven't been up there this time of year in the summer, I highly recommend going to buy a plane ticket and go check it out. It's just beautiful. The weather is great. There are lakes everywhere. The mountains are gorgeous. There is fresh air and small towns. It's a beautiful place."
Osweiler plans to make a trip to his hometown after the team wraps up veteran minicamp on Thursday. While Houston feels like home since he arrived, Osweiler will take advantage of the time off after this week. Between the end of veteran minicamp and the start of training camp, the team will have over a month to get away from the game of football.
"He'll be able to take his iPad with him with all of the practice film and the playbook on there, but also to take a break," head coach Bill O'Brien said of Osweiler. "You have to be able to clear your mind, you have to be able to recharge your batteries. You can't go at it like we've all been going at it for the last nine weeks."
The 25-year-old quarterback, who had been arriving at NRG Stadium around 5:45 a.m. this offseason, plans to to continue studing and throw at a local high school up north. While he may take some time off around the Fourth of July holiday for family and friends, Osweiler won't stray too far from football. He'll review his practice tape from OTAs and keep his playbook handy while in the mountains.
"I'm a firm believer that, as a quarterback, there's always something that you can be doing to get yourself better," Osweiler said. "So if you're going to take some physical time off, maybe you still stay in the book. If you're staying in the book, maybe take some physical time off. Then there's time where you pull completely back and there's time where you stay completely in physically and mentally. We're getting ready to hit the 'go' button and start Training Camp. There won't be many days off, but the week of the Fourth I will take a little refresher and hit the reset button."
The Texans plan to hold joint practices with the San Francisco 49ers and the New Orleans Saints during training camp this year.
Check out shots from the Texans' second day of veteran minicamp.
