Texans encouraged by rookie tight end Cade Stover: ‘Been the guy we saw on tape at Ohio State, just tough’

CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio – For Texans rookie Cade Stover, he’ll always have his first NFL game to cherish.

Being back in Ohio, playing in front of his family, the gritty former Ohio State tight end soaked up the moment in the Hall of Fame game against the Chicago Bears.

“I felt good,” Stover said. “It is a good way to get your feet wet. Especially to do it close to home here. It was special to me so it was good. I am glad it happened that way. .. I am just trying to give. I think you can play as much as you can for fifty years, and there is always something you leave the field with, like, ‘I wish I would have been better at that area, I wish I would have been better in some other area.’

“It is never going to be absolutely perfect. Right now, the hardest part of this is just the mental toughness of it all. Physical toughness, you either have it or you don’t, in my opinion. I always felt like I was bred in that area with things and that is just how it happens naturally. Just play after play, that is how we roll.”

Stover was as advertised in his NFL debut as he played 36 snaps for 72 percent of the offensive playing time. During that game, Stover displayed toughness, growing blocking skills and an ability to create space and catch the football. He finished with two catches for 26 yards on three targets, including a 15-yard reception.

“Cade has been the guy we saw on tape at Ohio State, just tough,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “Making tough competitive catches, finishing strong with the football. Like the couple plays he made in the game last Thursday, it’s cool to see a guy you see in practice, but you’re never quite sure how they’re going to respond when they get in the game, but it was cool to see Cade just be who Cade has been.

“Tough, physical, competitive, finishing and like loving football. That’s the Cade I knew and I grew to love watching him at Ohio State and that’s the guy who showed up in the Hall of Fame game.”

Growing up on a cattle farm, Stover became accustomed at an early age to the farming life. That meant long hours as he baled and cut hay, tended to animals and rose at the crack of dawn for his daily chores.

Stover loves working alongside his family on their farm in Mansfield, Ohio that included corn and alfalfa, but, mainly, producing beef for the two butcher shops they own.

The hard-working example of his father, Trevor Stover, a former Bowling Green tight end, helped mold Stover. He emerged as Mr. Football in the state of Ohio, a highly recruited basketball player and, ultimately, became a standout for the Ohio State Buckeyes. His father worked construction jobs in addition to leading the way on the farm.

Now, Stover applies those principles to his job as a professional football player after being drafted in the fourth round by the Texans and reuniting with former Buckeyes Heisman Trophy finalist quarterback C.J. Stroud. Working on the farm built toughness in Stover along with a desire to one day own a 500-acre farm.

“To me, it built me,” Stover told KPRC 2 following a rigorous workout before training camp with Rischad Whitfield, also known as Footwork King. “It built my pops. It built my whole family. Just the hardest working people come from that kind of background, that blue-collar background. So, that’s really what I try to do is keep putting on for the blue-collar community. I’m looking forward to hopefully expand that in the near future.”

When the Texans drafted Stover, a gritty converted defensive player known for his work ethic in the weight room, Texans general manager Nick Caserio and coach DeMeco Ryans’ shared enthusiasm was obvious.

The work ethic and passion for the game Stover possesses prompted the Texans to draft the Ohio native.

“Whatever it is, it’s elite,” Caserio said of Stover. “This guy is as tough, hard-nosed a player they had in the program. Cade is a good example of a player that only played tight end for two years. He’s certainly not a finished product. He has the mindset and work ethic to improve. How he was raised, this guy is everything you want in a football player and then more. He probably played hurt this year. I think he had an MCL, an issue where quite frankly it would have limited some other players, but he just braced it up and kept playing football.

“This is probably one of our favorite football players in the entire draft, regardless of position, because of his mentality, because of his mindset. And, he still is developing as a player. Two years ago, he was playing defensive end in the Rose Bowl against Utah. Now he’s played tight end for two years. Here he is getting picked in the bottom of the fourth round. We think his best position is tight end. That’s why we drafted him. Blue-collar as they come. Makeup, traits, toughness, mentality, this is an elite guy.”

Signed to a four-year, $4.758 million deal that includes a $1.189 million signing bonus, Stover was acquired after a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Texans traded their 127th overall pick of the fourth round and a 2025 fifth-round pick to select Stover 123rd overall.

He has set simple goals for his rookie season based on team goals, not individual accomplishments.

“I just hope to in any way I can enhance this team,” Stover said. “Whatever they need me to do, whatever they want me to do. That’s what I’m going to do to help this team and help everybody have a good season.”

Stover and Stroud have a close relationship, staying in touch throughout the draft process, including having a throwing session before Stover’s campus Pro Day workout that Stroud attended.

“Such an honor to play with C.J. again,” Stover said after being drafted. “A lot of emotions. I’m excited to contribute any way I can. He’s an awesome human being and an even better teammate. We were captains together. It was no surprise to me what he did last season. The dude is unbelievable.”

Stover (6-foot-4, 247 pounds) had zero drops last season and provides a strong blocking presence. He has run the 40-yard dash in 4.65 seconds. Stover has a 34 1/2 inch vertical leap, a 9-9 broad jump and a 4.45 short shuttle.

“For him to be able to come on the Texans and already add value is just amazing,” Stroud said. “He’s a hard worker. Y’all already know his background with the farm. So, I’m very excited for him. He’s been doing well. Very smart, very great with his hands. Just growing his route running, growing his ability to get open. I’m amazed to have another Buckeye on the team.”

Stover was named the Big Ten Conference Tight End of the Year last season.

He caught 41 passes for 576 yards and five touchdowns last season. He was a finalist for the John Mackey award. He’s a converted defensive end and linebacker.

“I kind of still see the game through a defensive lens,” Stover said. “I was born with that, I keep that defensive mentality no matter where I’m at. I just try to play offense with that same mentality and recklessness. I love blocking. I’m going to throw my face in the fire every chance I get.”

In 2022, Stover caught 36 passes for 406 yards and five touchdowns while catching passes from Stroud, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year last season.

He’s being mentored by veteran tight ends Dalton Schultz and Brevin Jordan.

“It is a great room, a lot of really great guys,” Stover said. “I am really close with a lot of those guys. Everybody helps each other, it is really nice learning from Dalton, Brevin, and those guys. Dalton has done it for a really long time, so he helps me a lot with things that really aren’t coachable things.”

So far, Stover is off to a good start at camp.

“It has been good,” Stover said. “A lot of learning, obviously. I am just trying to adjust to everybody, adjust to this scheme and see where you fit in, but it has been good.

“It has been good. It is just a different way of play, different terminology, it is a whole different scheme so just learning how they want things done compared to how I used to do things.”

While he was in Ohio for the Hall of Fame game and practices at The University School in the Cleveland area, Stover was able to spend time with his family and go back to the farm.

“I don’t go out a whole lot,” Stover said. “I went back to the farm for a little bit, which was great for a couple of days. Being with my grandparents and stuff and seeing my family and everything, it was good.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com.