It had become evident during the two most recent padded practices, both of which were in front of a packed house of Houston Texan fans, that rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud had taken the lead over 2022 starter Davis Mills in the battle for quarterback supremacy on the Texans’ roster. Stroud had most of the first team reps on Friday, and all of them on Saturday.
So it was just a matter of time, one would think, that Stroud would be named the starter. At the very least, we expected Stroud to be named the starter for the first preseason game this Thursday against the Patriots. Indeed, that announcement, if you want to call it that, came Monday after practice, courtesy of the NFL Network:
Shortly after Pelissero’s initial tweet, the video of the conversation dropped, with Ryans, Pelissero, and Jane Slater of the NFL Network, and it’s quite evident that DeMeco is very sheepishly and reluctantly revealing the fact that Stroud will start on Thursday, to the point that he accidentally says “Ravens” instead of “Patriots” a couple times:
Still, even after the reveal that Stroud would open the game this Thursday in New England, Ryans would not give into the notion that Stroud is or will be given the label of “starting quarterback for the Texans” anytime soon. This is a stark contract to the Carolina Panthers, who basically named first overall pick Bryce Young their starting quarterback about five seconds after he stepped off the plane in Charlotte for the first time after the draft.
For what it’s worth, Stroud has indeed separated himself from Mills in the most recent stretch of practices, getting the ball out quickly and accurately, and becoming more careful with protecting the football. The thing that would get Stroud benched the quickest would be a slew of turnovers, as Mills found out last season, when he led the NFL in interceptions.
So circle your calendar, Texans fans, and block out Thursday night. The C.J. Stroud Era begins.
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
