The Green Bay Packers held Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud to career lows in completions, passing yards and net passing yards in a suffocating performance on Sunday at Lambeau Field.
Stroud, the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2023, completed 10 of 21 passes for 86 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. He averaged 4.1 yards per attempt, lost 31 yards on four sacks and finished with a passer rating of 58.8.
Pressure was the key. According to Next Gen Stats, Stroud was under pressure on 48.5 percent of his dropbacks, a new career high. He completed only three passes under pressure.
“The defense played phenomenal,” quarterback Jordan Love said.
Coach Matt LaFleur said the Packers never let Stroud get comfortable.
“We put immense pressure on him,” LaFleur said.
Stroud completed just one pass over 20 yards — a 28-yard completion to Dalton Schultz. When targeting receivers Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell, Stroud was 5-for-11 for 23 yards. The Texans finished with only six passing first downs.
The Packers defense allowed 22 points, but the number is misleading. Of the 22 points, 16 came directly off turnovers, including 10 points on turnovers that gave the Texans the football inside the 20-yard line.
On the nine drives starting without a turnover, the Texans scored just six points and punted six times.
Sunday was Stroud’s 22nd NFL start. Only once before — last December against the New York Jets — had he finished a game with under 100 passing yards and a passer rating under 60.0.
The Packers finished with seven quarterback hits and four sacks. Of the four sacks, three came off blitzes. Xavier McKinney’s first-half sack knocked the Texans out of field goal range and forced a punt. Eric Wilson’s sack ended the Texans’ first drive of the second half after three plays. Wilson ended another second-half drive with a sack on third down near midfield.
The Texans were without top receiver Nico Collins and veteran Robert Woods, but it’s still difficult to downplay how well the Packers contained a top young quarterback in a big game.
The road to the Super Bowl is littered with elite quarterbacks. On a day when the Packers didn’t record a takeaway, a pressure-filled performance from the defensive front and a smothering coverage effort on the backend teamed up to create a dominant result from Jeff Hafley’s defense against a top passer.
