The CJ Stroud Question: How far can he lead the Houston Texans?
"Immensely talented. A high-character guy. Great leader." Christian Kirk and others have their quarterback's back. Go Long learned more about Stroud on our trip to Houston.
HOUSTON — This Houston Texans defense devoured two quarterbacks who’ve lorded over this sport: Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes.
It’s a nasty group with bad intentions. There’s no debate — Houston’s D is the best in the NFL.
The unknown is C.J. Stroud. In Year 3, is the former Ohio State passer prepared to elevate this team to Super Bowl contention?
Go Long recently spent a week with this team. Cannot wait to share our reporting.
Until then, let’s touch on the quarterback. Here are three quick conversations I had with players on the offensive side of the ball. Readers may remember two of the names from features past. I sat down with wide receiver Christian Kirk in Jacksonville the summer of 2024. In vivid detail, Kirk relived the day he asked himself a grim split-second question: “Am I going to die?” Texans lineman Juice Scruggs also got into a near-fatal car accident. In college, Scruggs hit black ice on the I-79 and, ironically enough, not wearing a seatbelt saved his life. (He still cannot believe he survived.)
Rookie wideout Jayden Higgins also took some time. He was on the receiving end of a clutch third-and-3 play by Stroud at Kansas City. Houston essentially put a dagger in the three-time champs with a 20-10 win.
This Texans defense is allowing the fewest points in the NFL. They’re loaded with wild personalities. (Subscribers: Keep an eye out for that feature at Go Long down the line.)
On offense? Teammates are keeping faith in Stroud through the ups and downs.
They see a quarterback who’s far more vocal than anyone realizes, a quarterback capable of stepping up in the fourth quarter of games.
Last weekend, the Texans hung on to beat the Las Vegas Raiders. It was a slog for the offense, but Stroud sealed the deal with a beaut to Nico Collins for 24 yards on third and 8.
On Saturday, the Texans face the 11-4 L.A. Chargers.
Nobody wants to face this defense. If Stroud takes off? Houston can go the distance.
More below.
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Christian Kirk, WR
This team, this offense. You guys have been close to things clicking. This looks like it could be a Super Bowl-caliber team if the offense gets rollin.’
Kirk: For sure. It’s definitely one of the most talented teams I’ve been on. But I think our culture speaks more than anything. The attitude, the SWARM mentality that the defense brings is something that also — offensively — we want to become our identity as well, and I think we show that at certain points in certain games. But I think right now offensively on our side of the ball, it’s just finding that consistently. Because we have all the talent in the world. And I just think it’s putting that together and really putting together that complete game, which I feel like we’re still chasing. We’ve got the right guys to do it, but man, it’s been fun to see our season turn around and play the type of football that we all knew we could play.
What about CJ? What did you know about him coming in and — being in that huddle — what makes him different?
Kirk: The thing that jumps off to me and what I saw from afar — and now being his teammate it’s confirmed — it’s his demeanor and his maturity. He’s mature beyond his years, the way he’s able to command the huddle, command excellence from everybody. The way he’s able to see the game. I think when it comes to extending the play and just having to feel post-snap and reacting to what the defense is doing? He’s one of the best I’ve been around, I think we saw that on Sunday night (against Kansas City). Some of those plays are made on third down, stiff-arming Chris Jones, and then making a throw in traffic. That’s something only a few guys in this league can do. So he’s immensely talented. A high-character guy. Great leader. He has a relationship with everybody in this locker room. So that’s the guy that you want to be at the head of your franchise and he will be here for years to come. But it’s been really fun getting to know him and play with him.
Everything’s going wrong at Kansas City. Third quarter couldn’t have gone any worse. So he’s got to stay in it. Stay even keel. It’d be really easy when you see Chris Jones, big 95 coming at you, to crumble with the way things were going.
Kirk: That speaks to the leadership, too. He pulled us all together at the end of that third quarter and was like, “Hey man, we’ve got to go take this thing. These are the defending world champs. They’re not just going to sit back and hand it to us.” So he’s able to lock everybody in and get us going to make that final push in fourth quarter
He got everybody together?
Kirk: Yeah, he got the offense together on the sideline and kicked us in the butt a little bit to say, “Let’s go. We’ve got to go take this thing.”
You said he gets to know everybody in here. How? I’m not sure how it all connects to what we see on the field, but football is a relationship business.
Kirk: 100 percent. You hit it on the head. It’s a relationship business and he’s a man of God. The way he approaches people — his energy — and he’s always an open ear, always asking questions and just checking in on guys. And I think that’s a special trait to have. That’s the thing that I always see. He’s always having conversations with people, very understanding and like he’s mature beyond his years.
Outside looking in, we all saw the numbers he put up as a rookie. Then, his numbers dip. The OC is fired. There’s some injuries. You start to wonder if he’s a quarterback regressing. But it sounds like there’s ways he is growing in Year 3. For this team, making those plays in those moments is what it’s about.
Kirk: 100 percent. When you talk about years like that, where maybe the stats aren’t there as much, that’s when you grow the most. That’s when you’re learning the most. I was told very early on in this league that there’s not a game that goes by where you don’t learn something. Especially in the losses. That’s when you learn the most. And obviously we’re not losing a bunch of games, but I think in times it provides opportunities to grow.
You know better than anybody. I keep coming back to that Jacksonville-Cincinnati game when you were injured in 2023. At that point, you’re 8-3. You’re having the season of your life. And that one moment, that one play, shit just changed.
Kirk: It changed everything.
For the worst. In a million ways. Now, you’re here on a division rival. And they’re in your way. I don’t know what the lesson is out of all that — you tell me.
Kirk: (laughs) I know. I searched for it, too. And I feel like there’s a million things you can pull from it, but man, the NFL is such a… people say “week to week.” It’s day to day. It is day to day because of the risk of stepping onto the field and the way you practice. Whatever the case may be — things can change. So you just have to take it one day at a time, put one foot in front of the other and weather the storm. That’s it. Because it’s a long season. It provides a lot of opportunity to grow. Not only as a player, but as a person.
You know that better than anybody with what you went through as a kid. You can give that perspective to everybody in here.
Kirk: No doubt. Now, we had our daughter in June. I’m a Dad now. June 26th. It’s the best thing in the world. Talk about everything good, bad or indifferent that happens here. You go home to that? It’s really put it all into perspective to me.
Jayden Higgins, WR
It’s third and 3 at the KC 24 and it looked like Stroud was about to be eaten alive by Chris Jones. Take us through that play.
Higgins: I had a crossing route, a shallow route across the field and as soon as I released, I saw CJ rolling out to the right. So I tried to find the zone where there’s a little bit of space and I saw him look at me and then I saw that the zone was closed so I moved a little bit more to the left and he just threw a great ball and I came down with it, and fell and embraced the contact.
That’s got to be tough to know where you’ve got to get to, in the zone. Do you have to have eyes in the back of your head knowing where all these Chiefs players are to nestle into a spot there?
Higgins: Yeah, for sure. As I’m running, I’m looking and seeing, but more so trusting him rather not to throw me into anyone. But kind of just trying to find the open grass.
It was a brutal third quarter. How was CJ able to hang in there to make these plays later?
Higgins: Yeah, I think that’s a testament to him continuing to just be mentally strong. Even when there’s some rough plays, he just continues to keep playing. No matter the situation. It was cold out there. However he can help the team win, that’s what he’s going to do.
To you, what stands out most with CJ? What’s something people don’t know about him?
Higgins: How goofy he is. You guys don’t really see it as much, but how goofy he is. Just a good guy, but as far as on the field, someone that’s always being vocal with you. Always just trying to put — me especially—but obviously everybody else in the right situation so they can succeed as well.
It looks like Houston has the defense, but the unknown is if you have the offense to go the distance. The quarterback. Obviously, you’re going to believe in your guy. But to you, why is CJ a Super Bowl-caliber quarterback?
Higgins: Not only the way he plays, but just the type of guy he is. It even comes down to that play that you were specifically talking about. Just someone that’s going to keep playing. It’s football. It’s not going to be pretty. It’s not going to be sunshine and rainbows. So you really need someone that’s going to be able to make those plays in crunch time.
In the huddle, is it a certain demeanor? What do you see in him?
Higgins: Sometimes he’ll get a little intense when we’ve got to go out there and make a play, which is good. He’s like, “Come on, we got to go make a play!” He’s challenging us for sure. But other than that, he’s just calm, cool, collected.
Juice Scruggs, OL
To you, what could make this team special? Now you can start thinking big. This is a group with a defense that may be one of the best we’ve seen. If you can put it together on offense, you’ve got a shot.
Scruggs: I think it’s us not thinking like that. Us thinking one game at a time, one day at a time, one play at a time and keep that mindset. Because like you said, we’ve got the pieces to do it. We just have to put it together.
What does it take to put it together? What do you guys have to do offensively?
Scruggs: Defensively, I think they’ve got it put together. Offensively, we just have to keep pushing every day. Better execution. Better operation, That’s stuff we can control. I just think we need to figure out the things we can control, get that going and then the sky’s the limit.
What does CJ’s approach look like up close? That Kansas City game was a microcosm.
Scruggs: Cool, calm, collected. He’s been like that since his rookie year, since we came in together. Nothing’s changed. It gives you a sense of confidence. He gives a confidence to the whole huddle. Things aren’t going right and you look at him and he’s just like, “Alright guys, let’s keep going, keep staying positive. That really helps as the leader of the offense to do that. So CJ just being him is what we need.
You noticed that early on. We talked in July or August of that rookie year (in ‘23) and I remember thinking you were just blowing smoke. And then you guys start reeling off all these wins. You saw something that early. What did you see then that’s grown three years into his career?
Scruggs: He has natural, God-given arm talent. I think the league is seeing that now. But I just think his rookie year, you could see his God-given arm talent, the abilities. And now the game has definitely slowed down in Year 3. So just him reading defenses a lot better. Him alerting the defenses, knowing the Mike calls, learning the whole offense. Everything’s clicking for him at the right time. And coming up, the season starts after Thanksgiving, so we’re picking it up at the right.
Is he doing the Mike calls? Is he setting protections and handling a lot?
Stroud: Yeah, he helps out a lot.
Because early on, he didn’t.
Scruggs: Rookie year, it was nothing. It’s growth.
In Carolina, there were people in the organization wishing coaches didn’t ask Bryce Young to handle so much, so soon as a rookie. They were envious of CJ’s situation.
Scruggs: I think that was the right approach to ease into it because we know he had the talent. I just think you can overwhelm a quarterback and you saw that in Carolina that first year with Bryce. But definitely now, (CJ) is a lot more advanced. He’s helping with the Mike call. He’ll change the Mike call. So it’s just growth. He’s getting better every day. If he sees something, he has the right to change it.
How would you compare that last offense to this one with a new coordinator?
Scruggs: It’s definitely a different scheme. The last one was more west coast. This one is more downhill, more I would say “QB-friendly” in a way. Just helping out the offense, the O-Line, making things more simple and not as complicated. It helps us play faster.
When you say more QB-friendly, what do you mean?
Scruggs: Definitely a lot less reads for him. As in with the safeties and the rotations, it’s a lot easier. Because we can see it. The O-Line can see it in this offense and it helps him out a lot. Yeah, so it is a lot easier for him.
ICYMI:
We discussed all things Stroud on “Real Football.”
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Great work, Tyler. He is an incredibly high character guy and leader, as we saw in Columbus. Merry Christmas!