Not many rookie quarterbacks have come into the NFL and had the type of success C.J. Stroud did in 2023.
The Texans were looked at as an afterthought going into the year and the play of Stroud helped elevate them into a serious playoff team in the AFC.
During a recent visit back to Columbus for Ohio State’s Pro Day, the Offensive Rookie of the Year shared what it meant for him to play the way he did this past season.
“It’s hard in the league,” Stroud admitted. “Every game counts because you only get 17 of them. … A lot of games come down to the fourth quarter. Some fans get mad at me because I’ll take a check down or I’ll throw it out of bounds — You have to play field position. Field position is super important in the NFL because you’re not going to score every drive. It’s not possible.”
The Pro Bowl QB went on to say that although Houston fell short of its ultimate goal he still considers last season a great step for the franchise.
“You want to be playing the Super Bowl and try to win that,” Stroud continued. “But I mean, I had to look from what we came from last year and just really DeMeco [Ryans] and Nick [Caserio] and our front office did a good job bringing the right guys in. And we’re trying to do the same thing this year.”
Stroud pointed to the “great coaching” he received at Ohio State as one of the biggest reasons for his success along with the confidence he carries himself with going into each and every game.
He’ll look to keep that rolling into his sophomore season after a year that saw him throw for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns and five interceptions.