Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud left his team’s game against the New York Jets after the back of his head hit the turf late in the fourth quarter.
CJ Stroud is down and Davis Mills is warming up. pic.twitter.com/APAtxgLsQH
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) December 10, 2023
Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans offered an update on the star rookie after the game.
#Texans HC DeMeco Ryans after the game, "Yeah, C.J. (Stroud) will be in concussion protocol, we'll see how he progresses throughout the week."
— Adam Wexler (@AdamJWexler) December 10, 2023
Stroud struggled against the Jets, completing only 10 of his 23 passes for 91 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions. The Jets wound up blowing out the Texans 30-6.
Jets quarterback Zach Wilson shocked much of the football world by completing 27 of his 36 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns, showing solid command of the offense. The Jets didn’t enjoy much success on the ground but found it pretty easy to move the ball through the air.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Stroud has arguably been the best rookie in the entire league this season. Prior to Sunday’s game, he had completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 3,540 yards, 20 touchdowns and just five interceptions.
Despite the loss, the Texans are still firmly in the playoff hunt and will be hoping to have Stroud back for next week’s game against the Tennessee Titans.
Three of Houston’s last four games this season will come against divisional opponents, which makes the contests even more important. Missing Stroud for any of those games would be a massive hit for a team that has surprised many so far in the 2023 campaign.
The Texans have been pretty unlucky with injuries recently. Rookie receiver Tank Dell, who formed a strong connection with Stroud, suffered a season-ending injury against the Denver Broncos.
Dalton Schultz missed Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury, and wide receiver Nico Collins suffered a calf injury against the Jets.
It’ll be interesting to see just how long Stroud is out for and if the Texans can win some games should he have to miss some time.
Regardless of what happens the rest of this season, the future appears to be pretty bright for the Texans. They have studs on offense and defense as well as a young head coach in Ryans that has lifted the team in his first year with the organization.
