Cal McNair

D. Cal McNair is the chairman and chief executive officer of the Houston Texans. McNair was named chairman in July 2018 after serving as vice chairman since 2008. He assumed the role of chief executive officer in January 2019 after serving as chief operating officer from 2012-18 and has been a limited partner of the Texans since 2001. McNair also serves as vice chair of RCM Financial Services and as a director of Palmetto Trust Company.

McNair, who has been actively involved with the football operations of the franchise since its inception, has been part of the Texans' search committee in several key hires, including Head Coach and General Manager Bill O'Brien in 2014, former Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager Rick Smith in 2006, former Head Coach Gary Kubiak in 2006 and former Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips in 2011. McNair also attends NFL meetings as part of team management and serves on the NFL Investment Committee while chairing the Audit Committee.

The Texans are one of three teams to win their division four-or-more times since 2015 (Kansas City and New England) and have now won their division in six of the last nine seasons (2011-12, 2015-16 and 2018-19). Houston is coming off its fourth appearance in the AFC Divisional Round in franchise history (2011, 2012, 2016 and 2019) and its 21 wins since 2018 are the second-most in a two-year span in franchise history (22 from 2011-12).

In 2019, the Texans put together a 10-6 regular season and captured the AFC South title on the back of a 4-2 division record and signature wins against Kansas City, New England, Tennessee and in London against Jacksonville. Houston went on to defeat the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card Round for their fourth postseason victory in franchise history. Following the season, McNair updated O'Brien's title to Head Coach and General Manager and Jack Easterby's title to Executive Vice President of Football Operations. O'Brien is now tied for the most division titles (four) and winning seasons (five) by an active head coach in their first six years in the NFL.

The Texans finished 2018 with an 11-5 record, which marked the second-most wins in a season in franchise history and the first season with double-digit wins since 2012. Houston became the first team to start a season 0-3 and win a division title since 1992 and won a franchise-record nine consecutive games in Weeks 4-13, which made them the first team in NFL history to win nine straight games after starting 0-3.

In 2016, the Texans put together their third-straight winning season (2014-16) for the first time in franchise history and captured back-to-back AFC South Division championships (2015-16). Houston advanced to the AFC Divisional Round for the first time since 2012 and finished the year with the NFL's top-ranked defense for the first time in franchise history. The team also posted a 7-1 record at home during the regular season, which set a single-season franchise record and tied for the best home record in the NFL.

The 2015 season saw Houston clinch its third AFC South Division title in franchise history and first since 2012. The Texans also became the only NFL team since 1950 to make the playoffs with four different starting quarterbacks winning a game during the regular season and had a defense that finished third in the NFL in total yards (310.2) and passing yards (210.4) allowed per game.

In 2014, O'Brien led the team to a 9-7 record in his first year as the franchise's head coach. Houston's seven-win improvement under O'Brien led the NFL and made the Texans the sixth team since 1978 to post a winning season following a season in which it won two-or-less games. O'Brien finished second in the Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year voting in 2014.

After getting hired in 2006, Smith and Kubiak worked together to build the franchise's first two AFC South championship teams in 2011 and 2012. The hiring of Phillips, who was named the 2011 Pro Football Writers Association Assistant Coach of the Year, helped bring about the third-largest defensive turnaround in modern NFL history from 2010-11 and played a major role in the franchise's first-ever playoff berth.

Prior to 2001, McNair worked at Cogen Technologies for 11 years. In 1987, he was hired as one of the company's first employees. After beginning his tenure with Cogen, McNair helped oversee the construction of several major power plants in the eastern United States, managing those assets in the areas of financial analysis and project management.

McNair is a member of the board of trustees of the Robert and Janice McNair Foundation and is a director, chairman and chief executive officer of the Houston Texans Foundation. The Houston Texans Foundation, whose mission is to be "Champions for Youth," has donated more than $35 million since its inception in 2002 through annual fundraising events, disaster response programs, the team's United Way campaign and partnerships with nonprofit organizations on gameday. In May of 2019, the Houston Texans Foundation and the McNair Family hosted the first-ever Champions for Youth Dinner at Steak 48.

McNair is also a member of the United Way's prestigious Alexis de Tocqueville Society and a current or past member of the Amegy Bank Advisory Board, the University of Texas Chancellor's Council, the Council of Overseers at Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business, Houston Zoo Board, the Fort Worth Zoo Board and the All Saints' Episcopal School Board in Fort Worth.

McNair and his wife, Hannah, are involved in and support many charities and philanthropic efforts including the YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Houston Food Bank, United Way, DePelchin Children's Center, Pro-Vision, Project 88, Bo's Place, The Holocaust Museum, Child Advocates, The Brookwood Community, The Mission of Yahweh, March of Dimes, American Cancer Society, MD Anderson, Lone Survivor Foundation, USO, Star Of Hope, Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation, Houston Police Foundation, Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Family Alliance, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, Texas Children's Hospital, United States Fund For UNICEF, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston Area Women's Center, The Children's Assessment Center, Impact A Hero, Freedom Place, Big Brothers Big Sisters and more.

McNair attended The University of Texas at Austin, where he was a four-year member of the Longhorn football team. He earned a Master's of Business Administration degree from the Rice University Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management.

Born in Houston, McNair attended Cypress-Fairbanks High School. He has seven children: Devon, Raelyn, Vivian, Robert, Calhoun, Michael and Hunter Grace. He resides in Houston with Hannah.