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QB C.J. Stroud, HOU (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter Faust
- Start date
Houston turmOiler
Footballguy
Bobby Slowik and Chris Strausser. The offensive line is horribly coached and Slowik is a lousy OC. Stroud got worse and worse as the season progressed because of it. He's not a confident player right now. Strausser will probably shoulder the blame and take the fall after the season, but I sure hope they send Slowik with him.
Stroud can absolutely bounce back next season, but I wouldn't bank on it if this offensive staff remains in place.
Gandalf
Footballguy
That's really helpful. Thanks!
joey
Footballguy
Agree. Thanks @Houston turmOiler
I thought I had my QB “solved” in the one dynasty league where I roster Stroud, but he led me to a lovely 11th place finish this year.
Gandalf
Footballguy
Right so what is the play here. Trade him now or pray for a rebound. IF he has another season like this, it's over.
joey
Footballguy
Well, easy for me since my league with Stroud is 12 team, start 1 QB and only keep 13, so tons of value at QB available in the rookie/free agent draft. So I’ll grab a Goff-pre-2024-style, “boring” vet in the 4th or 5th round and take it from there.
Houston turmOiler
Footballguy
Yeah he really killed me in our Shark Pool league. Thought he was really going to take off with Collins, Diggs, Dell, and Mixon in the backfield, but Slowik and his staff really proved incapable this season. The offensive line has been baffled by stunts up front all season and the coaches have very few answers. They're also terrible at halftime adjustments as the team went through a really rough stretch barely scoring points after halftime.
I still believe Stroud will be a pretty good QB, but not with this staff. Right now I'd equate it to Sam Darnold with Adam Gase or Matt Rhule, when he needs a Kevin O'Connell.
Major
Footballguy
I'd wait til you see how the coaching staff works out. If they fire Slowik, I'm a buy low guy. If Bobby remains on board, trade him.
Faust
MVP
Next Gen Stats
C.J. Stroud generated a majority of his passing production targeting in-breaking routes against the Chargers, accumulating 223 of his 282 passing yards (including a 13-yd TD to Nico Collins).
Clean: 18/23, 198 yds, TD
#LACvsHOU | #HTownMade
x.com
x.com
Kiddnets
Footballguy
good win for the kid - hopefully has another good performance to take the stink off a bit and give him confidence going into next year.
tough year - obviously soph slump but definitely some serious contributing factors - fix the OL and bring in another good WR and I think he jumps back to where he was - Id buy on the dip
satch
Footballguy
How are we feeling about CJ Stroud in 2025 and beyond post-draft? Supposedly, Stroud has been given more control in the offense. Any chance they go pass-heavy?
(No first round pick)
Round 2: WR- Jayden Higgins
6'4", 214
40: 4.47
Round 2: OT- Aireontae Ersery
Round 3: WR- Jaylin Noel
5'10, 194
40: 4.39
(No first round pick)
Round 2: WR- Jayden Higgins
6'4", 214
40: 4.47
Round 2: OT- Aireontae Ersery
Round 3: WR- Jaylin Noel
5'10, 194
40: 4.39
KellysHeroes
Footballguy
def undervalued, I never see his name come up in trade forums as most owners like me are holding and crossing fingers... and Hou are doing their best to help him out; would of like them to sign Mixon some help
Jayded
Footballguy
I wouldn't yet go so far as to say Stroud has more say in the offense. Houston has a whole new offense with Caley coming in as OC. I think you should expect more of the Rams-like approach in offense vs. what Houston has been doing in recent years. Wouldn't surprise me at all to see a lot more screens or quick slants to take some of the OL problems off of CJ that we saw last year.
Texans still do have Mixon and Dameon Pierce and just added Woody Marks in the draft along with Ogunbowale back there too. I suspect they'll invest heavier in the 2026 draft in a top tier RB talent, but I think Marks is supposed to be the player to take some of the snaps from Mixon. Would also be nice to see a resurgence of Pierce if the new system is a better fit for his skills.
Texans still do have Mixon and Dameon Pierce and just added Woody Marks in the draft along with Ogunbowale back there too. I suspect they'll invest heavier in the 2026 draft in a top tier RB talent, but I think Marks is supposed to be the player to take some of the snaps from Mixon. Would also be nice to see a resurgence of Pierce if the new system is a better fit for his skills.
joey
Footballguy
Stroud was dropped in 1QB TEP FFPC league (keep only 14 skill position players). The team that dropped him is stacked and has won it all 3 of the past 4 years, so any cutdown was hard for them (and they tried to work trades before dropping him).
Anyway, I have the 1.6, 2.2, 2.6, 2.7 and 3.9 picks, and I kept young/upside QBs in Nix and Maye. I’m thinking if Stroud is still there at 2.6/2.7, I kind of have to draft him there. Thoughts?
Anyway, I have the 1.6, 2.2, 2.6, 2.7 and 3.9 picks, and I kept young/upside QBs in Nix and Maye. I’m thinking if Stroud is still there at 2.6/2.7, I kind of have to draft him there. Thoughts?
satch
Footballguy
Still just 23, Stroud has shown flashes of fantasy star potential. However, given that he doesn't run much, he would need to take the Joe Burrow path to fantasy stardom. While few compare to Jamar Chase, Stroud has what I think most would now call an elite WR in Nico Collins. He also has Tank Dell to Burrow's Higgins, and now Christian Kirk, along with rookies Jayden Higgins and Jaylen Noel. That's not a bad WR corps. In the right system (perhaps Caley's?), does Stroud have the potential to put up Burrow-esque numbers?
MTskibum
Footballguy
There is not a bigger Dell fan on this forums.
My hope is he is able to sit out this year, and in 2026 perform at 80-90% of what he could be.
My fear is that his career is basically over.
With them taking two WRs early, I’d say they think the latter is a real possibility.
MTskibum
Footballguy
Normally, I would agree with you.
He will get a much longer leash to get healthy compared to most players just because he is good friends with Stroud and because he is on rookie deal and will be cheap after that deal expires
Most players would not get 2 years from date of injury, but my guess is we will still see dell on the team late into 2026.
Jayded
Footballguy
Potential? Sure. He showed flashes as a rookie. I'm buying CJ stock if he's really as cheap as I'm seeing others suggest above. Correct, he doesn't run so he has to take the pocket passer path to success, but I think Ryans has shown he's entrenched and if Caley sticks, CJ will get the consistency that can really help lead to that sort of sustained success.
The Texans also play in a relatively weak division (sorry AFC South fans) in the near term. Maybe Jacksonville finally figures it out, but they have seemed stuck in recent years. ARich is a bust to most everyone but the Colts, but maybe they get a Manning next year when they realize? Titans have some excitement in what Ward could be, but they're picking 1st for a reason.
So overall the Texans are best set up to succeed in short order in their division and with the staff and players in place. This should be the year we see CJ return to his rookie-like potential if he's going to get back there.
They gave Metchie a pretty long leash with his initial ACL recovery and then cancer diagnosis, so I think they will do right by Dell and try to keep him around longer than usual. But that doesn't necessarily mean he'll ever be a fantasy factor unfortunately. I think Tank becoming a better Metchie #4 guy for them is probably where he is trending towards.
That unfortunately is very true. Not excited about how they addressed their line this year. Hard to be much worse than it was last year but trading away your pro-bowl LT and starting a rookie could do it.
satch
Footballguy
True. They did take an OT with their 2nd pick. And like someone said, a change of scheme could help get the ball out of Stroud’s hands quicker.
GregR
Footballguy
Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said C.J. Stroud is dealing with “general soreness” in his throwing shoulder, but maintained that he’s not concerned that the issue will affect the star quarterback moving forward.
Stroud has not thrown in any of the Texans' six practices during offseason workouts. He’s only handed the ball off to running backs.
“We’re taking extra precautions with him,” Ryans said during his press conference Tuesday. “But he’ll be good to go. No concerns on my end.”
When asked whether Stroud would throw in the team’s mandatory minicamp practice next week, Ryans did not say.
“When he’s ready to go, he’ll be ready,” Ryans said, addressing Stroud’s issue for the first time since organized team activities began last week. “We’re not going to rush him into anything.”
Stroud has not thrown in any of the Texans' six practices during offseason workouts. He’s only handed the ball off to running backs.
“We’re taking extra precautions with him,” Ryans said during his press conference Tuesday. “But he’ll be good to go. No concerns on my end.”
When asked whether Stroud would throw in the team’s mandatory minicamp practice next week, Ryans did not say.
“When he’s ready to go, he’ll be ready,” Ryans said, addressing Stroud’s issue for the first time since organized team activities began last week. “We’re not going to rush him into anything.”
