HOUSTON — Growing up, most little boys would be playing in the backyard or with their friends and would act as if he was the star quarterback leading their team down the field for a final drive to win the big game.
There would always be a certain amount of time left on the clock as he would drop back, make defenders miss, and then heave a miraculous pass to the wide receiver, who would jump over a defender to make the catch. In his mind, he could hear the crowd going wild as his teammates rushed to the field to congratulate him on winning the game.
There is no doubt that Houston Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud hasn’t repeatedly played that scenario in his head since he began playing the position. Although the stakes were not as high as winning a Super Bowl, the position he was put in on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons had a momentous feeling and would have put the Texans over .500 on the season for the first time since 2019.
With the Texans trailing the Falcons 18-12 late in the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Houston needed their offense to produce a touchdown to take the lead. Red zone struggles have plagued the Texans early in the season, and their attempts at reaching the end had only produced four field goals by kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn.
“Me and Bobby [Slowik] had a conversation on the sideline about a certain route that we wanted to do,” said Stroud on Wednesday. “I told Dalton [Shultz] to do a certain thing in his route that I thought would not only get us a first down but a touchdown. #Texans #Sarge pic.twitter.com/MIgKw51PBd
— #SARGE (@BigSargeSportz) October 11, 2023
“Red zone wasn’t good enough,” said coach DeMeco Ryans about the inefficiency. “We needed to get points there, and we didn’t. Credit to Atlanta; they have a really good defense and did a really good job of forcing us to kick field goals in those positions.”
As lethargic as the offensive unit had played through three and a half quarters, there was still a chance for them to pull out a victory. Over the past three seasons, the Texans fanbase may not have had the confidence in the quarterback to lead the team to a victory. Still, the guy they have under center this season is different, as many have witnessed over the previous four games.
Stroud, 22, knew that his team depended on him, and the Texans were 75 yards away from reaching the end zone and taking the lead with just over 6:50 seconds remaining in the final period. Houston drove the field using a mixture of pass and run plays orchestrated by the second overall selection in the 2023 NFL draft and first-year offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik as they tried to use as much time clock as possible. But with 1:49 left on the clock, the Texans faced a crucial third-and-9 from the Falcons 18-yard line. Getting the first down was necessary for time clock purposes, but scoring their first touchdown of the day would be better.
With the game on the line, Ryans and Slowik put the play-calling duties in the hands of their rookie quarterback, and he manipulated the Falcons defenders perfectly to find tight end Dalton Schultz running up the seams for an 18-yard touchdown.
“Me and Bobby had a conversation on the sideline about a certain route that we wanted to do,” said Stroud on Wednesday. “We didn’t have it in at practice. I told Dalton to do a certain thing in his route that I thought would not only get us a first down but a touchdown. We were on the same page, but I was literally trying to break down exactly what I wanted from him in the huddle. At first I don’t think it registered, but then he said, ‘Okay, I get it.’
“Dalton is really smart and made a hell of a route. I was just being instinctive and putting my guys in the best position to make plays and win games and in that instance it was really special and Bobby was really happy on the sideline. He [Slowik] was a part of that too when I was talking on the sideline about doing it and he said, ‘If you are feeling it, just go ahead and make a play.’”
What should have been a joyous occasion for the Texans ended in heartbreak as Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder led his team down the field for a game-winning field goal drive to push Houston’s record to 2-3 heading into the Week 6 matchup with the New Orleans Saints.
Stroud may not have come away with the victory on Sunday, but what he did for his confidence and the belief in him from the organization and the fans speaks volumes to the franchise’s future.
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