The Texans' voluntary offseason workout program began today. Players started filing in to Ray Wright's weight room at 6 a.m., and Texans TV's Brooke Bentley caught up with several of them on camera to discuss their offseason and first day of lifting. Those interviews and a feature story will be available later this afternoon.
Left tackle Duane Brown looks lean - he said he was determined not to have a repeat of last year, when he reported for camp on the heavy side and had to battle to lose weight. Sounds good, considering that Alex Gibbs prefers his linemen to be athletic and agile. Meanwhile, running back Steve Slaton and linebacker Xavier Adibi have noticeably bulked up. Adibi played about 10 pounds under his normal weight because of an illness last season and has been working out hard with Wright.
The locker room had a first-day-of-school atmosphere this morning, with players joking around with each other and talking about their offseasons. One of the most entertaining stories came from defensive tackle Travis Johnson, who was abuzz about attending WrestleMania XXV yesterday at Reliant Stadium. Johnson sat ringside at the sold-out event with offensive linemen Chester Pitts, Eric Winston, Chris Myers and Mike Brisiel. He couldn't stop marveling at the strength of wrestling superstar John Cena.
It's amazing to me how fit the players are at this point of the offseason, given that today is the first day they've been required to work out since 2008. Most of them spent their offseason vacationing and relaxing, but they still look like they could suit up for a regular season game tomorrow. Receiver Kevin Walter mentioned four or five different places that he traveled to offseason, then said that he worked with a trainer almost everywhere he went so that he could stay in top shape.
For the next six weeks, Monday is a "lift only" day for the players. Players will have a team run Tuesday through Thursday and also be scheduled to lift on those days. Check back with HoustonTexans.com later today and all week for more coverage as the players continue with the workout program.
