When Younghoe Koo kicked a 37-yard walk-off field goal to deliver the Atlanta Falcons a 21-19 win over the Houston Texans in Week 5, it recalled another game-winning field goal situation from the annals of Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Literally seconds into 2023, Noah Ruggles missed a 50-yard field goal that would have lifted Ohio State past Georgia into the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Instead the Bulldogs prevailed 42-41.
Buy Texans TicketsC.J. Stroud is the common denominator in both contests as he led would-be game-winning drives that were for nought.
In college, Stroud setup the field goal. Against the Falcons Oct. 8, Stroud helped Houston take a 19-18 lead with 1:54 to go. The defense just could not hold.
The No. 2 overall pick saw the similarity.
“It’s a blessing to play in this great league and against a great opponent like the Falcons, but yes, it’s tough,” Stroud said. “I have been done bad in this stadium two times now. I don’t think it’s funny. It is what it is. Now, we just have to go back to the drawing board and keep working.”
Stroud and the Texans won’t have the worry about Mercedes-Benz Stadium for another eight years — unless Atlanta hosts a Super Bowl in the near future.
