C.J. Stroud isn’t the next Patrick Mahomes, but the NFL analysts can’t stop gushing over his potential.
NBC Sports’ Chris Simms praised the second-year Houston Texans signal-caller following his 24-20 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars last Sunday at NRG Stadium. Houston needed 59 minutes and 42 seconds to secure a victory thanks to a 1-yard touchdown pass from Stroud to running back Dare Ogunbowale.
“He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL,” Simms said during NBC’s Football Night in America broadcast. “And I’ll say this, too: I think he may be the best pocket-passing quarterback in all of football. He never misses a target.
Teach tape from C.J. Stroud keeping his base wide and not having to reset. Utterly inexcusable from Jacksonville on 3rd and Forever pic.twitter.com/8gEpEJVJvB
— Jacob Nierob (@JNierob) September 30, 2024
“It doesn’t matter if you stop the Texans’ run game or not, because this guy at quarterback, with Nico Collins catching it on the other end, they’re almost unstoppable. C.J. Stroud I can not say enough good things about.”
Simms is right. The duo of Stroud and Collins has been a two-man wrecking crew keeping Houston alive at 3-1 through four weeks. In all three victories, Collins has finished with at least six catches for over 100 yards.
In the Week 3 loss against the Minnesota Vikings, Stroud tossed a pair of interceptions. Collins finished with just 86 receiving yards and only one pass over 20-plus yards downfield.
C.J. FINDS NICO TO LEAD US DOWN THE FIELD ‼️
📺: @NFLonCBS / @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/guOoTdrQ3a
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) September 29, 2024
Stroud taking over games is far from new for Texans fans. Last season, he orchestrated multiple down-to-wire drives to secure the victory, including Week 9’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
After securing the first postseason berth in four years en route to winning Offensive Rookie of the Year, Stroud has lofty goals and high expectations to met in 2024. The Texans look to be a contender in the AFC alongside Buffalo, Baltimore and Kansas City.
With the arrival of Stefon Diggs, Houston could be a sneaky and underrated dark horse to hoist up its first Lombardi Trophy in franchise history. The league will have a better understanding of where the Texans lie when they take on the Bills this Sunday at noon CT.
