Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud went from belle of the ball to butt of the joke within three seasons.
Such is life in the NFL.
Stroud, 24, authored one of the best rookie seasons in recent memory after the Texans took him second overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. The Ohio State product tossed for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns against only five interceptions en route to Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. The Texans made the playoffs for the first time since 2019, crushing Cleveland before getting crushed by Baltimore.
How the 2023 season ended didn’t matter because, with Stroud, the Texans’ future was bright.
That also meant the standard changed.
And so, it was unacceptable when Houston fell in the AFC Divisional Round for the third consecutive season this January — losing 28-16 in New England. It was downright worrisome because of Stroud’s individual performance: 212 yards, one touchdown, four first-half interceptions, and three sacks on 20-of-47 passing.
Box score aside, the eye test saw a once calm, collected quarterback appear totally in his head. Analysts suggested Houston should bench Stroud at halftime for backup Davis Mills. Some pundits and fans doubled down on that, calling for the Texans to trade their franchise star.
Texans general manager Nick Caserio isn’t buying it.
“We are not trading the guy,” Caserio told reporters at the 2026 NFL Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, as relayed by ESPN’s DJ Bien-Aime. “He’s our quarterback. He’s going to be playing quarterback for the Houston Texans in 2026.”
Caserio added, “He’s been a good player and won a lot of football games. Quarterback is the hardest position to play in sports. He had some ups and downs. That’s natural for a position. But, overall, he’s had a pretty significant impact on what we are as a program. […] He’s not going anywhere.”
Stroud is eligible for an extension as he enters the final season on his rookie contract.
Caserio’s belief in Stroud is not misplaced, but Stroud’s struggles also can’t be reduced to a one-off.
In the Texans’ 30-6 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Wild Card, Stroud fumbled the football five times, losing two. His 2025 season overall is tough to adjudicate because he missed four games after suffering a concussion against Denver in Week 9, but he finished with 3,041 yards, 19 touchdowns, and eight interceptions on 64.5 percent completion. This subpar campaign came after a shaky sophomore season in 2024, which was largely blamed on former offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik and a porous offensive line that allowed 52 sacks of Stroud.
The Texans have every reason to want to avoid returning to the quarterback wilderness, where they regularly resided before Stroud’s arrival. But deciding whether to bet long-term on Stroud carries even more weight when factoring in that the Texans had a Super Bowl-caliber defense in 2025.
Caserio and the Texans are hoping Stroud and Will Anderson Jr., Houston’s All-Pro pass-rusher taken third overall in 2023, will be the engines to finally push the Texans past the AFC Divisional Round for the first time in franchise history.