{"id":769224,"date":"2026-02-22T15:52:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T15:52:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/769224\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T15:52:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T15:52:16","slug":"texans-not-eyeing-offseason-c-j-stroud-extension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/769224\/","title":{"rendered":"Texans Not Eyeing Offseason C.J. Stroud Extension?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It is a foregone conclusion that the Texans will exercise<\/a> quarterback C.J. Stroud<\/a>\u2019s fifth-year option, thereby assuring him of a $26.53MM salary for 2027. It is less certain that Houston will discuss a long-term contract with Stroud\u2019s camp this offseason, and Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 unequivocally asserts those talks will not commence until next year.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In a lengthy video report<\/a> addressing recent speculation that Houston could consider trading Stroud \u2013 whose middling 2025 regular season culminated in two turnover-riddled playoff contests and another divisional-round exit \u2013 Wilson says contract talks are not in the team\u2019s immediate plans. Instead, he believes the club and Stroud will reach an understanding in which the Texans tell the former No. 2 overall pick they will be happy to pay him like a franchise passer a year from now, after a strong 2026 performance.<\/p>\n

Although he does not explicitly say so, one of the reports Wilson appears to be referencing is one recently published by Albert Breer of SI.com<\/a>. Per Breer, it may be difficult to get Stroud to accept anything less than the $60MM-per-year payout that Cowboys\u2019 QB Dak Prescott<\/a> presently enjoys, which Breer suggests will soon become the new benchmark for high-end quarterback contracts.<\/p>\n

Of course, given that Stroud followed up his Offensive Rookie of the Year showing in 2023 with two less inspiring seasons, and given that his two most recent playoff games featured a combined five fumbles (two lost) and five interceptions, it is fair to wonder if his track record and upside merit a top-shelf deal. While not as adamant as Wilson, Breer indicates the Texans could delay contract talks until the 2027 offseason. <\/p>\n

If Houston does elect to negotiate, its perception of Stroud\u2019s value may be starkly different than the player\u2019s self-evaluation, which could cause the talks to get \u201csticky.\u201d Breer echoes prior reports that the Texans may be aggressive in seeking an extension<\/a> for edge rusher Will Anderson<\/a>, and if they authorize a top-of-the-market pact for the defensive star but not for their QB1, the relationship between Stroud and the club may become strained.<\/p>\n

Either development \u2013 contentious negotiations or an outright postponement of negotiations \u2013 could pique the interest of QB-needy teams, which could then try to pry Stroud away from Houston. Breer does not say the Texans have received calls on Stroud, nor does he indicate they would even entertain such calls if they came in, but it makes sense that other clubs would be monitoring the situation just in case.<\/p>\n

But even if they do not believe he is presently deserving of a $60MM\/year contract, the Texans have no intention of trading Stroud, per Wilson (who says it would cost at least two first-round picks for an interested team to acquire him). Wilson goes on to say Houston\u2019s plan is to bolster the O-line, upgrade the tight end room, and add another starting-caliber running back. Those moves, in conjunction with a second year under offensive coordinator Nick Caley, are expected to allow Stroud to thrive in 2026 and improve his earning power in 2027.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It is a foregone conclusion that the Texans will exercise quarterback C.J. Stroud\u2019s fifth-year option, thereby assuring him…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":769225,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2056],"tags":[1028,7,221,253,2368,6,222,6051],"class_list":{"0":"post-769224","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston-texans","8":"tag-c-j-stroud","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-houston","11":"tag-houston-texans","12":"tag-houstontexans","13":"tag-nfl","14":"tag-texans","15":"tag-will-anderson-jr"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116115090107357476","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/769224","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=769224"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/769224\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/769225"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=769224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=769224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=769224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}