When DeAndre Hopkins showed up for some offseason work with quarterback Brock Osweiler and his teammates in Arizona this offseason, he didn't know what to expect.
What he didn't expect was a full itinerary.
The new quarterback had put together a full schedule of the days' events for the week in Scottsdale. In return, he received a crash course on the Texans playbook from third-year quarterback Tom Savage and worked on routes with wide receivers.
"Those guys were coaching me up on the field," Osweiler said Wednesday. "We threw at Arizona State, tremendous facilities. Then we'd get a little work out in, then each night we would pick a spot for dinner and we'd go out and hang out and get to know each other a little bit. Overall, the week was fantastic."
Fantastic, but certainly not easy.
Osweiler admitted that despite working hard, no one complained about the 95-degree Arizona heat, or that it was technically still time to be on vacation, or the long days of practice. Each of the receivers, Hopkins, Cecil Shorts III, Keith Mumphery, and Jaelen Strong, had a work ethic that impressed the 25-year-old quarterback.
"I didn't take it easy on them that week," Osweiler said. "I was running them into the ground and making them earn their dinner each night. They all bring a tremendous work ethic, they are a lot of fun to work with. They're great guys and most of all, they're hungry to be great. That's what makes it exciting to work with them."
Players returned to NRG Stadium this week as the Texans began Phase 1 of their offseason workouts. They will have plenty of time to begin developing chemistry and bonding with new teammates. However, for Hopkins, that week in Arizona was a big step in the right direction.
"To me that's more important than you meeting here at the stadium when you have to," Hopkins said. "That's where you build that chemistry at. If you're best friends outside of football field, when you get out there on Sunday things are going to be much easier. You're going to be able to know what each other are doing just from giving each other a look. That's where most chemistry is built on championship teams."
View photos of players as they spoke to the media on Wednesday.
