Consummate pro and more
Texans’ Joseph personified excellence on and off field in exemplary nine-year run
Johnathan Joseph will always hold special place in Texans’ lore.
It isn’t often that an NFL teams feels compelled to announce that they will not pursue a new contract with one of their players and wish him well in free agency.
Johnathan Joseph earned such a notice from the Texans, who made the announcement that he would not be returning for the 2020 season.
It will be the end of a splendid run of excellence, on and off the field, for a player who is the epitome of an excellent teammate.
Better than any player in team history, Joseph met the challenge of being straightforward and honest, while seemingly always saying the right thing.
He vigorously defended teammates and coaches, quickly accepted responsibility for failings, whether he was directly responsible or not, fully embracing the role of tone-setter, spokesman.
He tutored fellow cornerbacks, even young ones who were hoping to one day replace him in the lineup.
“I always want to see the next guy do well,” Joseph would often say.
Joseph signed with Houston before the 2011 season, the clear demarcation of the Texans going from a disrespected, little talked about expansion squad to a perennial threat to win its division title.
A host of factors led to the change, but Joseph, who spent his first five season with the Bengals, was no small part of it.
Then general manager Rick Smith’s futile chase of Nnamdi Asomugha proved to be a blessing, as the Texans were able to sign two veteran defensive backs for their beleaguered secondary.
With the addition of Joseph and Danieal Manning, plus the arrival of Wade Phillips as defensive coordinator and his switch to a 3-4 defense, and rookie lineman J.J. Watt, the Texans went from having the NFL’s worst pass defense to its third-best, and from third-worst overall unit to No. 2.
Joseph’s ability to play manto-man on the outside was a significant feature in the defense’s immediate turnaround.
How immediate? In the first quarter of the season opener, the Texans held Indianapolis to five yards and forced two turnovers. It was a new day.
Joseph was voted into the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career that year. He was the first Texans defensive back to be so honored since Aaron Glenn in the team’s inaugural season.
Amazingly, Joseph and Glenn are the only defensive backs in franchise history to make the Pro Bowl.
In the nine seasons before Joseph slipped on the deep steel blue uniform for the first time, the Texans allowed the second most passing touchdowns, the second-highest passer rating, the third-highest completion percentage and had the fewest interceptions in the NFL.
In the nine seasons since, they are in the top 10 in most major pass defensive categories, including second in completion percentage and first downs allowed via the pass.
Joseph started 128 games for the Texans, and holds the franchise lead in interceptions (17), passes defended (118) and interceptions returned for touchdowns (four). Fast enough to run with speedy wideouts and strong enough not to be bullied by bigger ones, Joseph studied opponents and was sharp enough to disguise his technique to confuse quarterbacks.
At his best, he was a joy to watch.
But Joseph’s on-the-field contribution is only a small part of his impact on the Texans.
Consummate professional doesn’t go far enough in describing a player who played hard, played hurt, mentored teammates, was active in the community and went above and beyond to accommodate media requests.
O’Brien’s much-repeated theme of being a good teammate has at times been a running, playful joke among Texans players.
But Joseph was serious about being the best teammate he could be, the complete package.
Faster, stronger defensive backs will come along. And the way the Texans tend to roll, someone else is likely to run onto the field at NRG Stadium next year wearing Joseph’s No. 24.
But Joseph will always have a special place in Texans’ history.
It won’t be the same around here without him.