The Houston Texans needed Jimmie Ward.
New coach DeMeco Ryans needed a former lieutenant from his San Francisco 49ers defenses to show the way to the younger Texans. The former 2014 first-round safety could demonstrate technical aspects of the defense to second-year Jalen Pitre while also clarifying in the locker room the expectations and demeanor one needs to play in Ryans’ system.
In Houston, Ward is aware his experience playing for Ryans will be called upon just as much as his skills on the field.
“Just try to bring the younger guys along because I’ve been through a lot going on my 10th year in this league,” Ward told reporters May 4. “Really just try to explain to them my experience and tell them in this defense that you’ve got to work as a string. If somebody is off on this defense, we can give up an explosive.”
According to John Kosko from Pro Football Focus, Ward ranks No. 27 on the analytics site’s top-30 list of players 30 years old or older.
Ward has been a consistently good piece for the 49ers’ defense for several years and follows his defensive coordinator to Houston. While he struggled in coverage early in his career, he has been excellent in both coverage and run defense since 2019.
Ward started in five of his 12 games played last season for San Francisco, but was still effective. The former Northern Illinois product collected 50 combined tackles, a tackle for loss, two quarterback hits, an interception, a pass breakup, and three forced fumbles.
