Tag: C.J. Stroud 2024

C.J. Stroud’s emotional reaction to Tank Dell’s injury breaks hearts

The Houston Texans quarterback was visibly upset following Tank Dell’s potential season-ending injury on Sunday

It was a somber scene at Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday afternoon as Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dell was carried into the ambulance for what was ruled a severe knee injury.

Fans couldn’t stomach the play. Quarterback  C.J. Stroud, meanwhile, let his emotions finally peak through.

Dell, who suffered a season-ending leg injury last December, had just caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Stroud to put the Texans down by a point against the Kansas City Chiefs. As he hit the turf, the second-year receiver collided with teammate Jared Wayne and Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie on his descent.

Teammates knew immediately that Dell was hurt and needed medical assistance. The aftermath was difficult to watch, as visibly upset Texans players prayed over Dell while he was being attended to.

Stroud, in particular, looked quite distraught and began to cry. Cameras caught teammate Joe Mixon consoling the quarterback after the play as Dell was being placed in a brace to keep pressure on the knee.

On the field, Dell and Stroud are a dynamic duo. Off it, they’re close friends who consider each other “brothers.”

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said that Dell would stay overnight for further evaluation at a local hospital on what’s being ruled a “significant” knee injury. He was one of three players to leave Saturday’s 27-19 loss against Kansas City on a short week of practice.

Dell was having one of his best games of the regular season, hauling in six passes for 98 yards and a touchdown. He was on his way to a second 100-yard outing before leaving with a knee injury.

The Texans are already without wideout veteran Stefon Diggs, who tore his ACL in October and will likely be without Dell for their run to the postseason. The gut-wrenching incident is a reminder of the humanity that resides in the game’s outcome.

Stroud is human. Anyone in that moment would act accordingly.

Houston returns to NRG Stadium Stadium to take on the Ravens on Christmas Day.

All 32 NFL quarterbacks (including C.J. Stroud) ranked by Total QBR entering Week 16

Here’s where Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud stacks up among other passers in QBR entering Week 16.

Houston Texans second-year quarterback C.J. Stroud saw his passer rating drop following a 20-12 win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 15.  His Total QBR rating of 48.3 remained intact among all 32 passers.

Stroud’s season-long rating remains in good standing entering the final four games of the regular season, but he still ranks among the bottom half of passers at No. 23 overall.

Stroud’s traditional passer rating this season is 87.8, which ranks 22nd.

Unlike a traditional passer rating, the Total QBR “incorporates all of a quarterback’s contributions to winning, including how he impacts the game on passes, rushes, turnovers and penalties,” according to ESPN.

The metric takes into account scenarios that a traditional passer rating overlooks and considers “a team’s level of success or failure on every play to provide the proper context and then allocates credit to the quarterback and his teammate to produce a clearer measure of quarterback efficiency.”

With that context in mind, here’s a look at how Stroud stacks up against the NFL’s other starting quarterbacks this fall entering Christmas weekend.

NFL QBs ranked by Total QBR after Week 15

  1. Michael Penix: 95.3
  2. Josh Allen: 79.3
  3. Lamar Jackson: 76.0
  4. Joe Burrow: 74.0
  5. Kyler Murray: 68.3
  6. Jayden Daniels: 67.9
  7. Matthew Stafford: 66.4
  8. Jordan Love: 66.3
  9. Jared Goff: 65.6
  10. Jalen Hurts: 65.4
  11. Brock Purdy: 65.2
  12. Patrick Mahomes: 64.6
  13. Tua Tagovailoa: 61.2
  14. Sam Darnold: 60.2
  15. Drake Maye: 58.7
  16. Justin Herbert: 56.5
  17. Baker Mayfield: 56.1
  18. Russell Wilson: 55.3
  19. Aaron Rodgers: 53.9
  20. Mason Rudolph: 53.4
  21. Bo Nix: 52.2
  22. Geno Smith: 52.1
  23. C.J. Stroud: 49.8
  24. Caleb Williams: 48.1
  25. Anthony Richardson: 46.5
  26. Drew Lock: 45.3
  27. Bryce Young: 44.0
  28. Spencer Rattler: 42.0
  29. Aidan O’Connell: 40.7
  30. Cooper Rush: 36.3
  31. Mac Jones: 34.1
  32. Dorian Thompson-Robinson: 16.

Fresh off winning the AFC South division title for the second straight season, Stroud will look to improve his Total QBR rating when the Texans travel north to take the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 16.

Texans QB C.J. Stroud explains struggles following loss to Titans

C.J. Stroud made it clear that his performance on Sunday wasn’t up to par for the Houston Texans as they fell to 7-5.

C.J. Stroud made it clear that even though the defense gave up 32 points to the Tennessee Titans, he didn’t hold up his end of the bargain.

It’s why the Houston Texans are sitting at 7-5 after a 32-27 loss at home.

Stroud, who threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns, also tossed two interceptions. He completed just over 60% of his passes and tossed a pair of interceptions, including one to Titans linebacker Kenneth Murray on a scoring drive in the third quarter. He sacked for a safety with 1:17 remaining and nearly ran out of the back of the end zone.

Dan Orlovsky would have been proud. Texans fans are frustrated and Stroud can understand why.

“It’s no secret I haven’t been playing well for my standard,” Stroud said following a second consecutive home loss.  “Everybody has to look in the mirror and try to get things fixed. So that’s gotta be the plan for this week. Practicing. Getting better. Personally, I got to get better. As a team, we have to get better.”

Week 12 epitomized the Texans’ season up to this point as Houston enters its final game before the bye. An 80-yard kickoff return by Dameon Pierce set up a 14-yard touchdown pass from Stroud to rookie tight end and former Ohio State teammate Cade Stover.

Down by 10, Houston responded with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Nico Collins, then a 56-yard gain to the Pro Bowl receiver to set up a Ka’imi Fairbairn field goal.

Then, much like the second half of the season, everything went wrong.
Stroud and John Metchie III weren’t on the same page with just over a minute remaining in the first half, leading to an interception and Nick Folk’s field goal. The offense never reached the end zone and settled for two more attempts for Fairbairn while trusting the defense to deliver.

But the final blow came on the Texans’ second-to-last drive. Stroud connected with Collins for a 33-yard touchdown that would have given them a four-point lead, but the play was nullified by an illegal motion penalty on Joe Mixon and Tank Dell.

Stroud said it was on him not having his teammates prepared for the snap.

“I got to give the play better and make sure guys are on the same page, and even when we break the huddle, still communicate a little bit and make sure everybody’s doing what they’re doing,” Stroud said. “But it was my fault.”
Stroud will take ownership of the offensive woes, but it’s not all on him.

Houston’s offensive line gave him a clean pocket in the first half and allowed four sacks in the second. That factored into a passing yards and completion percentage between the first and final 30 minutes.

Houston also couldn’t run the football to save face. Mixon, fresh off a three-touchdown outing against the Dallas Cowboys on “Monday Night Football,” averaged 1.6 yards per attempt on 14 carries.

“They’re a really good front. Really good front,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “We knew that going into the game. But it doesn’t matter. Every front is good. You have to own the line of scrimmage.”

Houston has seven days to recoup before it travels to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars at EverBank Stadium. It can’t afford a loss, but it also can’t waste a strong defensive performance.

The Texans tied their franchise record for sacks (eight) and tackles for loss (15) in a game. Safety Jimmie Ward intercepted Titans second-year quarterback Will Levis and returned it for a 67-yard touchdown. Kris Boyd recovered a muffed punt to set up Houston inside Tennessee’s 40.

Outings like that won’t always be promised, so Stroud’s already getting prepped for film study on Monday and an aggressive week of practice.

“Everybody has to look at themselves in the mirror and try to get things fixed,” Stroud said. “That will be the plan this week. Practicing and getting better.”

All 32 NFL quarterbacks (including C.J. Stroud) ranked by Total QBR

Here’s where C.J. Stroud stacks up in terms of QBR entering Week 11’s showdown with the Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud needs a rebounding performance following Sunday’s 26-23 loss against the Detroit Lions. 

Stroud, a once favorite to win the league’s MVP honors, completed 57.6% of his passes for  233 yards and a touchdown against two interceptions. After guiding Houston to a 23-7 lead at halftime, Stroud completed 39% of his throws for 68 yards and had two interceptions in the third quarter, with one occurring in the end zone on a touchdown pass intended for Tank Dell. 

Stroud posted a Total QBR rating of 32.9 in the loss, bringing his season-long Total QBR average to 54.8.

That’s a slight undergrade from last week’s rating (57.6), but Stroud has dropped from being ranked No. 18 last week up to No. 19 this week.

Nix’s traditional passer rating this season is 89.1, which ranks 19th overall.

Unlike a traditional passer rating, the Total QBR “incorporates all of a quarterback’s contributions to winning, including how he impacts the game on passes, rushes, turnovers and penalties,” according to ESPN.

The metric takes into account scenarios that a traditional passer rating overlooks and considers “a team’s level of success or failure on every play to provide the proper context and then allocates credit to the quarterback and his teammate to produce a clearer measure of quarterback efficiency.”

With that context in mind, here’s how Stroud stacks up against the NFL’s other starting quarterbacks this fall.

NFL QBs ranked by Total QBR after Week 10

  1. Lamar Jackson: 76.9
  2. Kyler Murray: 75.7
  3. Joe Burrow: 74.3
  4. Jayden Daniels: 71.2
  5. Josh Allen: 70.3
  6. Patrick Mahomes: 67.7
  7. Brock Purdy: 66.6
  8. Jalen Hurts: 64.3
  9. Derek Carr: 61.3
  10. Jameis Winston: 61.0
  11. Justin Herbert: 59.6
  12. Matthew Stafford: 59.5
  13. Russell Wilson: 59.5
  14. Kirk Cousins: 57.9
  15. Baker Mayfield: 55.9
  16. Jordan Love: 55.5
  17. Drake Maye: 55.2
  18. Sam Darnold: 54.7
  19. C.J. Stroud: 54.6
  20. Bo Nix: 54.4
  21. Jared Goff: 54.2
  22. Geno Smith: 52.3
  23. Aaron Rodgers: 52.0
  24. Tua Tagovailoa: 50.3
  25. Daniel Jones: 46.3
  26. Caleb Williams: 38.4
  27. Gardner Minshew: 37.8
  28. Anthony Richardson: 37.6
  29. Bryce Young: 32.7
  30. Will Levis: 31.8
  31. Cooper Rush: 24.8
  32. Mac Jones: 11.4

Stroud and the Texans will hit the road to take on the Dallas Cowboys in Week 11 on ‘Monday Night Football’ at AT&T Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.

The game will be nationall televised on ABC and ESPN.