HOUSTON — There is an old saying around the game of football from its inception that states, “football is life,” and for second-year Houston Texans safety Jalen Pitre, that is all he thinks about consistently.
“All the time,” Pitre responded when asked how much he thinks about the game. “I go to sleep with it [football] on my mind, and I wake up with it on my mind. I feel like God has blessed me to play this game that I love, and I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m glad that it’s all over TV. I went home last night, got home from meetings, iced up, and all that. Turned on the TV, the Saints were playing, the Chiefs were playing. I’m locked in. This is the best season right here. Football season.”
If training camp indicates how locked in the former 2021 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year has been, then the skilled position players on the offensive side of the ball should be on notice anytime he is in the vicinity. Along with fellow safety Jimmie Ward, Pitre has had his imprint all over the Texans’ defensive backfield. He can be heard all over the field calling out defensive coverages and talking trash to his teammates when the defense wins a rep.
“I go to sleep with on my mind and I wake up with it on my mind,” said Texans safety Jalen Pitre about the game of football. #Texans #Sarge @TheTexansWire pic.twitter.com/lYgu0VBXKI
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) August 15, 2023
Pitre, 23, is looking to take the next step in becoming one of the best safeties in the game, which is something he expressed to former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back and NFL analyst Ryan Clark, who was in attendance with former NFL players Channing Crowder and Fred Taylor as they filmed and recorded for their digital platform and podcast show, “The Pivot.”
The mindset for the young safety is to improve on his team-leading five interceptions from his rookie season by becoming more aggressive when the ball is in the air.
“Oh yeah, I’m going for the ball every time,” Pitre said after practice on Wednesday. “I feel like it’s important that we get takeaways for the offense to get the ball back, and every time the ball is in the air, I’m looking to do that. I’m always looking to get the ball back in the offense’s hands.”
