The New England Patriots are admired for their team-building efforts, so it’s not surprising when another franchise attempts to copy them.

Meet the Houston Texans, who appear to be gaining some ground in the NFL by adopting a similar decision-making and draft philosophy under the leadership of Rick Smith, a Dayton Meadowdale High School graduate.

Smith, the Houston general manager, has spearheaded the team’s turnabout since taking over for Charley Casserly following a 2-14 season in 2005. The Texans improved to 6-10 the next year, then went 8-8 in 2007 and 2008.

During a recent phone interview, Smith, at 38 the youngest GM in the league, shared his philosophy on building a franchise as well as expectations for the team’s future.

“Obviously, it’s an exciting time for us because from a philosophical standpoint this is the way that we want to build our football team — through the draft,” Smith said. “What that means is having success on draft day and further down the road it becomes important to lock those young players up.

“This is the time of year where we really have an opportunity to get our football team right. You have a couple of opportunities to get better. One is free agency and the second one is the draft.”

The team addressed some key areas on defense during free agency by re-signing a number of its own players, then had what looks like a strong draft, snagging Southern Cal linebacker Brian Cushing in the first round and Cincinnati defensive end/linebacker/tight end Connor Barwin, perhaps the hottest prospect going into the draft, in round two.

“The communication between our scouting department and coaching staff has worked very well,” Smith said. “I like how well our process has gone this year. I can start to see some of the benefits from the two staffs working hard together. With that, I expect us to have success.”

The Texans seem to be on the cusp of challenging for their first AFC South title. They won five of their last six last season.

“We’re in a very tough division,” Smith said. “We understand that in order to achieve our goals we’re going to have to be competitive in our division and win our division. It’s a physical brand of football we play and we like to establish a mindset and work ethic of what it takes to win in this league.”

Smith went on to say that the team is maturing and learning how to win and that should translate into a playoff spot.

This year’s Arizona Cardinals? Don’t be surprised if the Texans are christened with that distinction as the season draws closer.