Janice McNair, the matriarch of the Houston Texans, died Tuesday at 89 years old, but the passing of the franchise’s co-founder and senior chair won’t have any impact on the ownership of the team
When Bob McNair died in 2018, Janice took over as the team’s principal owner with their son Cal McNair, the franchise’s CEO and chair, running day-to-day operations. A couple years after Janice suffered a stroke that relegated her to a wheelchair, Cal was approved by the NFL as the Texans’ new principal owner in 2024. The vote among other owners in the league was unanimous.
“The Houston Texans mean so much to our family, and I’m extremely proud that Cal will continue to lead the franchise moving forward,” Janice said after the vote. “He has done such a terrific job as our CEO, and we believe this move is what’s best for everyone involved with the organization to secure our future under Cal’s leadership.
“I know how pleased Bob would be to see this, and our fans should be incredibly excited about the direction we are headed. I will continue to support Cal and the team in every way that I can and, of course, be rooting for us each and every week.”
A year before Cal was named principal owner, Cary McNair, Janice and Bob’s oldest son, sued for guardianship of his mother, with his attorneys arguing that his Janice’s cognitive health had declined after her stroke. That lawsuit was eventually dropped, but Cary still is suing the NFL claiming the league and Cal McNair worked to boot him from the family’s business interests, including the board of the trust that owns the Texans. That lawsuit, which seeks $100 million, is still pending, although it won’t affect the ownership of the team.