Ryans on Texans' lack of nationally televised games in 2023: 'We have to go out and earn our right to be in those prime-time moments'

While the Houston Texans’ hiring of DeMeco Ryans as head coach and the selections of former Ohio State University quarterback C.J. Stroud and University of Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr. are perceived as positives for a franchise that’s seemingly stuck in a rebuild, they weren’t enough to convince the National Football League’s (NFL) schedule makers to put the team in a coveted primetime matchup.

The Texans have been either the worst or one of the worst teams in the league since 2020, mustering a paltry 11 wins during the tumultuous time period.

After compiling a 3-13-1 mark last year, they join the Arizona Cardinals, the team they traded with for the third overall pick in last month's draft that became defensive monster Anderson, the Indianapolis Colts and the Atlanta Falcons as the only ball clubs that won’t play under the bright lights in 2023.

And that’s just fine, according to Ryans, a former Texans linebacker, Houston NBC affiliate KPRC reported.

“One thing that I’ve learned is I’ve just looked at it as for us as a team, we have to go out and earn, earn our right to be in those prime-time moments,” the 38-year-old Ryans, whom the Texans lured from the San Francisco 49ers, said, KPRC reported. “So, it was a good opportunity for our team to just go out, put our head down and work and just prove where we belong. [I’m] excited about it.”

According to Houston Daily, CBS Sports reported that Mike North, the NFL’s vice president of broadcast planning, said flex scheduling would be the Texans’ lone hope of appearing on Sunday Night Football (SNF), Monday Night Football (MNF) or even a widely watched Sunday afternoon slot.

“If [they’re] frisky and relevant late in the year we'd love to find a window where we can reintroduce them to the nation,” North said.

Ryans implied his players aren’t concerned about what outsiders think.

"For me, it's not about showing the NFL anything," the sixth head coach in franchise history said, Houston ABC affiliate KTRK reported. "It's about us as a team just going out, working and when you humble yourself and you work, you put your head down and work, you're deserving of those things, then they'll come to you.”