Cal McNair

Daniel Calhoun McNair (born October 24, 1961) is an American businessman and sports executive. He is the principal owner, chairman, and chief executive officer of the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL).

Early life and education McNair was born in Houston, Texas, on October 24, 1961, to Bob McNair and Janice McNair. He then went to Cypress-Fairbanks High School. McNair attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he was a walk-on member of the Longhorns football team, and subsequently graduated from Rice University in 1995 with a Master's in Business Administration. In a September 2022 Reddit Ask Me Anything, McNair denied that he ever played video games in his office. McNair assumed more responsibility after his father was diagnosed with cancer in 2013, and was promoted to chairman in July 2018. Sports Illustrated noted that Easterby seemed to have a strong influence on McNair, in part due to their shared religious faith, and interviewed Texans staffers, some of whom portrayed the CEO as bumbling or overly trusting. After Easterby's hiring, there were many high-profile departures of Texans employees, including those directly involved in football operations such as general manager Brian Gaine and head coach Bill O'Brien (the former fired after less than two years as GM), and those working for the franchise in other areas, such as J. J. Moses, Amy Palcic, and Jamey Rootes. In a December 2020 statement, Cal McNair took responsibility for each decision to fire employees.

During the 2020 season, in which Houston went 4–12, McNair had several meetings with Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, during which Watson requested that his opinion on head coach and general manager candidates be taken into account. Subsequently, the Texans hired Nick Caserio as general manager without consulting Watson, and did not include his preferred head coach candidate, Eric Bieniemy, on their original interview list. Due to these events, Watson requested a trade from the Texans. After he sat out the entire 2021 NFL season because of sexual assault accusations made against him by multiple female massage therapists, Watson was eventually traded to the Cleveland Browns. The Texans faced lawsuits from many of these women alleging that the franchise had enabled its quarterback's behavior, which the McNairs chose to settle without admitting wrongdoing.

In October 2021, Michael Silver of Bally Sports reported that in May of that year, McNair had referred to COVID-19 with the racially insensitive term "China virus" at a charity golf tournament benefitting the Houston Texans Foundation. McNair apologized for what he termed "an inappropriate choice of words."

Houston's on-field struggles in 2020 and 2021 pushed McNair to make changes to the organization's relationship with its fans, and he stated that he was optimistic about the team's chances in 2022. Ultimately, the franchise selected DeMeco Ryans for the vacant position. After the selection of quarterback C. J. Stroud with the second pick in the 2023 NFL draft, McNair denied rumors that he had directed the members of the front office to take Stroud.

On March 26, 2024, McNair succeeded his mother as principal owner of the Texans.

Philanthropy McNair has supported a wide variety of charitable causes. He is a member of the board of the foundation named for his parents, as well as a director of the Houston Texans Foundation. They have also supported the YMCA, Houston Food Bank, United Way, and Boys & Girls Clubs of America. He has had four children with her, giving him a total of seven.