Stroud has passed for 627 yards and rushed for 44 yards through two games, but he only has two touchdowns and has scored a combined 37.5 Fantasy points against Buffalo and Cincinnati. We'll see if Nico Collins (hamstring) can play in Week 3 at Indianapolis after being out in Week 2, but Stroud can be a low-end starter in deeper leagues even if Collins sits again. The Colts have allowed a season-high 706 passing yards in two games with four touchdowns and no interceptions, along with 57 rushing yards and a touchdown. Stroud is worth adding for 1 percent of your remaining FAAB.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Atypical numbers in loss
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Stroud completed 30 of 55 passes for 353 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions and rushed three times for 29 yards in the Texans' 20-6 loss to the Bengals on Sunday.
On a day when he was missing top receiver Nico Collins (hamstring) and led the Texans to only six points, Stroud somehow found his way to his highest passing yardage total since Week 10 of his rookie 2023 campaign. Stroud largely got there by incessantly targeting Dalton Schultz, who was on the receiving end of 12 of the quarterback's completions and accounted for 140 of his yards. The fourth-year signal-caller managed to help the Texans to only three points after halftime, however, and he took all four sacks he sustained in the fourth quarter. Stroud did record completions to eight different targets overall in the absence of Collins, and he could have his top wideout back in the fold for an important early-season Week 3 divisional road clash against the Colts next Sunday.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Week 2 Waiver Priority List
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Stroud played well in Week 1 against Buffalo with 274 passing yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, and he added 15 rushing yards and two fumbles. He scored 20.5 Fantasy points, which is just the second time he's been over 20 Fantasy points in his past nine outings, going back to last season, including the playoffs, so keep that in mind. But Stroud could end up as a low-end starter this season, and he's worth adding in deeper leagues for 1 percent of your remaining FAAB.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Two TDs, two fumbles in Week 1 loss
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Stroud completed 26 of 38 passes for 274 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 36-31 loss to the Bills. He also rushed twice for 15 yards and fumbled twice, losing both fumbles.
Stroud guided a pair of touchdown drives capped by David Montgomery runs before finding Nico Collins for a 12-yard touchdown in the final minute of the first half. The 24-year-old QB gave the Texans a one-point lead with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Montgomery in the fourth quarter, but the Bills responded with a 9-3 run to take a five-point lead with 1:36 remaining. Houston's final drive got to first-and-goal at Buffalo's nine-yard line before Stroud took two sacks in a three-play span, the last of which ended in his second lost fumble of the game. Turnovers in big moments have become a recurring issue for Stroud, who turned the ball over seven times in two games last postseason. Stroud and the Texans will try to bounce back in Week 2 against the Bengals.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Extension talks paused
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Stroud and the Texans will wait until after the 2026 season to work out a long-term contract extension, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
The two sides attempted to reach an agreement prior to Sunday's regular-season opener against the Bills. However, it looks like talks between Stroud and the Texans have stalled, and a long-term deal will be revisited following the conclusion of the upcoming season. Entering his fourth year in the NFL, Stroud is looking to reclaim the same form he had in his rookie campaign in 2023, when he was named the Offensive Rookie of the Year after completing 63.9 percent of his passes for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns and five interceptions across 15 regular-season games while adding 39 carries for 167 yards and three scores.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Injuries and trade reshape WR room
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Stroud heads into the regular season with Nico Collins, Xavier Hutchinson, Jaylin Noel (hamstring) and Kayshon Boutte as his top wide receivers, while Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle reports that Tank Dell (knee) will begin the season on IR with a designation to return.
The Texans traded for Boutte from New England after Jayden Higgins tore his ACL, knocking the 2025 second-round pick out for the season. Boutte's 551 receiving yards for the Patriots in the 2025 regular season would have ranked second among Houston's wideouts behind Collins. Hutchinson had a career-high 428 receiving yards during the 2025 regular season, Noel has some intriguing upside as a 2025 third-round pick, and Houston is hoping to get Dell back eventually from the knee injury that sidelined him for the entire 2025 season. Stroud is looking to bounce back after a 2025 campaign in which he threw for career lows in both passing yards (3,041) and touchdown passes (19) during the regular season before coughing up seven turnovers in two playoff games.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Leads TD drive in brief outing
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Stroud completed four of six passes for 27 yards in Thursday's 22-20 preseason loss to the Raiders.
Stroud got the start in Houston's second preseason game after sitting out the opener. He played only one possession but led a touchdown drive, which was capped by a 20-yard Woody Marks touchdown run. Despite some struggles down the stretch last season, Stroud retains his role as the starting quarterback for a Texans offense that will be without second-year wide receiver Jayden Higgins (knee) in 2026.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: On track to play Thursday
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Stroud is expected to play a few series during Thursday's preseason game against the Raiders, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.
On Wednesday, head coach DeMeco Ryans told Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle that he was preparing to rest most of the team's starters for Thursday's game, but that apparently applied mainly to the Texans' defensive starters. Ryans wants to get a more thorough evaluation of the offensive personnel Thursday, especially when it comes to determining Houston's five starters on the offensive line heading into Week 1. According to Wilson, Stroud is expected to take around 20-to-25 snaps, so he'll likely be on the field for around two or three possessions before turning the game over to backups Davis Mills and Brett Rypien.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Scheduled to play against Vegas on Thursday
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Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said Saturday that Stroud and the other healthy starters will play in Thursday's preseason game against Las Vegas, DJ Bien-Aime of ESPN.com reports.
Ryans will give his key players some run after holding them out from the preseason opener. Stroud's offensive line crucially appears healthy, including new starters Braden Smith (RT), Wyatt Teller (LG) and Keylan Rutledge (C).
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: DNP in preseason opener
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Stroud didn't suit up for Thursday's 27-7 preseason-opening loss to the Chargers.
Houston rested its starters, including Stroud. Davis Mills led a touchdown drive on Houston's first possession before being replaced by third-string quarterback Graham Mertz, who subsequently injured his knee, prompting Mills to return to the game. Stroud had a forgettable playoff showing last season, but he remains locked in as Houston's starting QB ahead of Mills.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Not expected to see action in preseason opener
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Stroud is among the Texans' starters not expected to play in Thursday's preseason opener against the Chargers, Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Per Alexander, Thursday's contest is likely to feature rookies and journeyman players trying to make the Texans' 53-man roster rather than established starters. In that scenario, Stroud's next chance to see preseason action will occur Aug. 20 against the Raiders. Davis Mills and Graham Mertz are available to handle QB reps against Los Angeles on Thursday.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Getting Dell back in fold
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Stroud and the Texans offense got a boost in Monday's training camp practice with the return of fourth-year wideout Tank Dell (knee), John Harris of the team's official site reports.
Both Stroud and Dell were selected by the Texans in the 2023 NFL Draft, and the duo formed an immediate connection in their rookie seasons, connecting for 47 catches (on 75 targets) for 709 yards and seven touchdowns across 11 regular-season games. Dell was one of Stroud's top targets in 2024, but the former suffered major leg and knee injuries late in the season that caused him to miss the entire 2025 campaign. Dell's return to team drills Monday is a positive sign for his recovery, and his availability for the start of the regular season would be a significant boost for Stroud, who is looking to bounce back from a lackluster 2025 season.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Strong offseason, per OC
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Ahead of training camp, offensive coordinator Nick Caley notes that said he's seen Stroud take a leap this offseason, Jonathan M. Alexander of The Houston Chronicle reports.
"There was a lot of progress that C.J. and the offense made last year," said Caley, who enters his second year as Houston's offensive coordinator. "We continued to get better from the start of the season to the end of the regular season and just continued to make progress from week to week. So we're going to continue to build on that. It's a new year. C.J. has done a great job out here. Looks good. Locked in." During the 2025 regular season, his third campaign with the Texans, Stroud -- who had his fifth-year contract option picked up in April -- threw for 3,041 yards with 19 TDs and eight picks in 14 games to go along with 48 carries for 209 yards and a rushing score. Looking ahead, he'll look to rebound from a forgettable four-interception outing in his team's divisional-round postseason exit last season, while working with a pass-catching corps that continues to feature WRs Nico Collins and Jayden Higgins, along with TE Dalton Schultz. The Texans also traded for RB David Montgomery this offseason and added TEs Foster Moreau and Marlin Klein with the goal of establishing a more effective ground game to help balance out the team's offense, per Nick Shook of NFL.com.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Fifth-year option picked up
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The Texans have exercised the fifth-year option of Stroud's rookie contract Wednesday, Field Yates of ESPN reports.
Stroud thus remains under contract through 2027, though his fifth-year option being picked up doesn't necessarily preclude Houston from inking the 24-year-old quarterback to an extension. Trade rumors surrounded Stroud early in the offseason, but GM Nick Caserio doubled down on the team's long-term commitments to the 2023 first-round pick during the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine and the league's annual owners meetings. Across 14 regular-season appearances in 2025, Stroud threw for 3,041 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions, the lowest TD and yardage totals of his career to date. The case for Stroud to rebound for fantasy purposes next year relies on projecting wideouts Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel to take a step forward in Year 2 alongside No. 1 WR Nico Collins, and potentially also for Tank Dell (knee) to resume producing after missing all of 2025. The Texans also have Xavier Hutchinson, Justin Watson and TE Dalton Schultz (calf) rounding out the receiving corps.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Delivers two TDs in Week 18 win
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Stroud completed 14 of 23 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 38-30 win over the Colts. He added five rushing yards and a TD on two carries.
With the Texans coming into Sunday with a chance to win the AFC South, Stroud got the start and connected with Jayden Higgins on an 11-yard score before running in a two-yard TD himself, both in the second quarter. With the out-of-town scoreboard not cooperating and the Jaguars winning big, however, Stroud gave way to Davis Mills in the second half. Stroud wraps up the regular season with a career-high 64.5 percent completion rate, along with 3,041 passing yards and a 19:8 TD:INT in 14 games, and he'll be under center in the wild-card round when Houston hits the road to take on the winner of Sunday night's Baltimore-Pittsburgh clash to decide the AFC North.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Plays role of game manager Sunday
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Stroud completed 23 of 35 pass attempts for 187 yards and a touchdown while gaining no yards on four rush attempts in Sunday's 23-21 victory over Las Vegas.
Stroud failed to follow up last week's three-score outing with a more modest fantasy performance in Week 16. The 23-year-old returned to his game-manager style of play in which he protected the football and did just enough on offense to secure victory for Houston. The Ohio State product's modest totals resulted in him failing to extend his streak of throwing for 200 or more yards to four games. Stroud's low ceiling in fantasy makes him a middling option for Week 17 in a road matchup against the Chargers.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Sleeper QBs
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I expected Stroud to play well in Week 15 against Arizona, and he delivered a solid outing with 29.4 Fantasy points. He should have another quality performance in Week 16 against Las Vegas, and the Raiders just allowed Jalen Hurts to score 31.1 Fantasy points in Week 15. For the season, seven quarterbacks have scored at least 21.2 Fantasy points against Las Vegas, and I expect Stroud to add to that total. He should be considered a low-end starter in all leagues.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Sleeper QBs
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This is a good spot to trust Stroud with a home game against the Cardinals, and he's worth using as a low-end starter in all leagues. Stroud has scored at least 22.4 Fantasy points in two of his past three games at home, and Arizona has allowed three of the past four opposing quarterbacks to score at least 23.1 Fantasy points, including Brock Purdy, Trevor Lawrence and Matthew Stafford. Stroud has been a mediocre Fantasy quarterback since returning from a three-game absence with a concussion, scoring 14.6 points or less in consecutive outings against the Colts and Chiefs. But I expect him to end his slump with this matchup against the Cardinals at home.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: Avoids mistakes in win
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Stroud completed 15 of 31 passes for 203 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions in Sunday's 20-10 win over the Chiefs. He added two rushes for five yards.
Stroud led the Texans to consecutive scoring drives late in the first quarter and into the second quarter, during which he completed long passes of 46 and 53 yards while also capping a touchdown drive with a nine-yard pass to Woody Marks. He didn't muster much production thereafter, as Houston's only additional score came on a short field as the result of a turnover of downs by Kansas City. Positively, Stroud did not turn the ball over and helped Houston continue to surge toward a playoff spot, though he has only one total touchdown in two games since returning from a concussion.
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Texans' C.J. Stroud: QBs to Sit
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Stroud returned from his three-game absence with a concussion in Week 13 at Indianapolis and only scored 9.1 Fantasy points. It will be tough to trust him in one-quarterback leagues at Kansas City, and Stroud has scored 15.7 Fantasy points or less in four of five road starts this season. Now, Stroud did score 20.1 Fantasy points at the Chiefs in 2024 in Week 16, and Kansas City has allowed Daniel Jones and Dak Prescott to each score at least 20.8 Fantasy points in the past two games. But I'm not counting on Stroud to have a big performance Sunday night, and I would only start him in Superflex and two-quarterback leagues.
