{"id":728242,"date":"2026-02-04T07:21:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-04T07:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/728242\/"},"modified":"2026-02-04T07:21:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T07:21:15","slug":"texans-cj-stroud-is-nearly-unrecognizable-after-cutting-his-hair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/728242\/","title":{"rendered":"Texans\u2019 CJ Stroud is nearly unrecognizable after cutting his hair"},"content":{"rendered":"

Texans\u2019 CJ Stroud is nearly unrecognizable after cutting his hair<\/a> appeared first on ClutchPoints<\/a>. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

They say a fresh haircut can signal a fresh start. If that\u2019s true, Houston Texans<\/a> quarterback CJ Stroud<\/a> is stepping into 2026 with a completely different mindset<\/a>. Images of Stroud sporting a clean, short fade went viral Tuesday. It instantly drew double-takes from fans used to seeing the franchise quarterback with his signature dreadlocks. That\u2019s a look he\u2019d worn since his freshman year at Ohio State.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The cut was done by his longtime personal barber<\/a>, Kase McGee (KaseKuttz), whom Stroud famously relocated from Ohio to Houston to keep his \u201cuniform\u201d sharp, and with some help from Houston-based hairstylist Ashley Means.<\/p>\n

The timing hasn\u2019t gone unnoticed. For many, the transformation feels symbolic. Stroud has previously said that a haircut can reset confidence. Now, he has shed five-plus years of hair growth. It reads like a visual declaration of focus. Around the league, and especially in Houston, the early consensus is that the quarterback is \u201clocked in\u201d for a redemption push.<\/p>\n

Social media, predictably, had its fun. Jokes about \u201cchoking so bad in the Playoffs he went and cut all his hair off \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d\u201d<\/a> followed. However, most reactions from the Texans\u2019 fanbase leaned supportive. The prevailing belief: a streamlined look for a quarterback intent on leaving a frustrating playoff exit behind.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

That Divisional Round loss capped a compelling 2025 Texans season. After an 0-3 start, DeMeco Ryans\u2019 team rallied to a 12-5 finish. They earned a Wild Card berth and delivered the franchise\u2019s first-ever road playoff win by dismantling Pittsburgh. A cold loss in Foxborough ended the run, but Houston emerged as a clear AFC contender.<\/p>\n

Individually, Stroud\u2019s 2025 campaign reflected growth and adversity. Despite missing time with a shoulder strain, he threw for 3,041 yards with 19 touchdowns. Of course, he led Houston back to the Divisional Round. The four-interception finale<\/a> against New England stung. Still, judging by the new look, it also lit a fire.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Texans\u2019 CJ Stroud is nearly unrecognizable after cutting his hair appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":728243,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2056],"tags":[1222,7,7770,221,253,2368,6,222],"class_list":{"0":"post-728242","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston-texans","8":"tag-cj-stroud","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-franchise-quarterback","11":"tag-houston","12":"tag-houston-texans","13":"tag-houstontexans","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-texans"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116011158103680356","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=728242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728242\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/728243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=728242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=728242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=728242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}