Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year following an impressive first season in the league. He became the first player in franchise history to win the award and the third to win a rookie award.
C.J. Stroud's fantastic rookie season ends with him winning OROY 🙌
📺: #NFLHonors on CBS & NFLN
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Stroud was the overwhelming vote-getter as well. He earned 48 out of 50 first-place votes and two second-place votes for 246 points. He beat out Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua (second place, 154 points) and Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta, (third place, 40 points).
The rookie quarterback set the NFL world on fire after the Texans took him with the No. 2 overall pick. He completed 63.9% of his passes this season for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns and only five interceptions. Those numbers rank 11th, third, tied-for-sixth and tied-for-second among all rookie quarterbacks since the 1970 merger.
His leadership played a pivotal role in the Texans’ rise from fourth to first in the AFC South. Stroud led Houston to a two-game winning streak at the end of the 2023 season to clinch a playoff spot before the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Week 18 loss catapulted the Texans to the top of the division. Stroud then threw three passing touchdowns in Houston’s huge win over the Cleveland Browns in the wild card round and became the youngest quarterback to win a playoff game.
Stroud and the Texans head into the 2024 season with a lot of progress to build upon after this past season. Most of their young core will return, and the team has a lot of salary cap space to work with as well as the No. 23 overall pick in the NFL draft.