Houston Texans C.J. Stroud had a lot of big moments during his rookie season. Between big plays and clutch performances, Stroud proved to be one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL as he took his team to the divisional round of the AFC playoffs.
One of Stroud’s proudest moments, though, was a dramatic late-game win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10. Stroud threw a costly interception late in the fourth quarter that set up a Bengals touchdown to draw Cincinnati within three of Houston’s lead. The Bengals forced a three-and-out on the ensuing possession and their offense converted a field goal to tie the game up with 97 seconds left in the game.
Stroud led a game-winning drive on the next possession for Houston, though, thanks to clutch throws to tight end Dalton Schultz and wide receiver Noah Brown that concluded with a 38-yard field goal.
He explained on “The Pivot Podcast” how he told Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans that he’d make up for the late interception and Stroud also broke down how the huge third-down catch by Schultz wasn’t even supposed to happen.
In a week 10 match up vs @JoeyB’s @Bengals pro bowler @CJ7STROUD threw a costly late interception. It was a minor setback for a major comeback.
The Rookie star took us play by play through the @HoustonTexans’ game winning drive with the recall of a football savant. The Texans,… pic.twitter.com/VW3DYZ1jQu
— Ryan Clark (@Realrclark25) February 8, 2024
The was a seminal moment in Stroud’s rookie year, as the win pushed Houston to over .500 for the first time all season. It also showed his ability to improvise and perform in the face of adversity.
Stroud finished the game with 356 passing yards, one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown. This all came a week after he put up 470 yards and five touchdowns in a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Stroud and company went on to win the AFC South for the first time since 2019 and beat the Cleveland Browns in the AFC wild card round.