The Houston Texans’ season came to an end on Sunday, suffering a demoralizing 28-16 loss at the hands of the New England Patriots.
Quarterback C.J. Stroud had arguably the worst outing of his professional career, completing 20 of 47 pass attempts for 212 yards, one touchdown, and four interceptions.
Despite the performance, Stroud’s Texans teammates didn’t blame him for the loss and uplifted their quarterback, encouraging him after a playoff run that saw the former No. 2 overall pick turn the ball over seven times in two games.
Houston’s star defensive end Will Anderson Jr. even believes Stroud is still one of the best quarterbacks in the league.
“And I’m gonna be 100% honest, it’s so much bigger than football. It’s so much bigger than what everybody has to say, especially for C.J. When he’s good on his faith, he knows what he’s looking for. He knows who he is, and he’s got it, man,” Anderson said via ESPN’s DJ Bien-Aime.
“So I got him, he’s gonna be good. We’re watching behind him, and I told him, man, I still think you’re the best sports athlete in the nation. Hands down, there’s nobody better than you.”
C.J. Stroud Reflects on Brutal Playoff Performance
Despite his teammates standing up for him, Stroud still shouldered the blame for the way the Houston Texans‘ season ended on Sunday.
“I look back, and I just feel like I let people down. I’m…not not happy with that, and you know, it hurts, and I’m not naive to it. I didn’t play my best this year, but I’m gonna respond. I’m gonna, you know, keep my chest up, my chin up high, and I’m gonna just keep battling for it,” a defeated Stroud told reporters.
“But yeah, I think, even today…just our team doing great, you know, our defense getting stops…and I just being careless with the football. I gotta, you know, get that fixed and something that I know I can, so I’m gonna get that done.”
Stroud’s performance will go down in the history books as one of the worst playoff outings in recent memory.
His -.047 EPA/play is the fourth-worst since 2023.
Stroud will have future opportunities to rectify his mistakes in the future, and it will be interesting to see if this embarrassment lights a fire under him to improve his game.
Azeez Al-Shaair Backs up C.J. Stroud
Anderson wasn’t the only member of the Houston Texans’ vaunted defense to defend Stroud after the playoff loss.
Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair defended his quarterback for the outing, relating to him after being blamed for Houston’s divisional playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2024.
“Last year it was me…and so I know exactly what it feels like to feel like you let the team down. I remember sitting in the locker room in Kansas City, literally saying that to the whole team. I couldn’t look nobody in the face,” Al Shaair said via KHOU Jason Bristol.
“But at the end of the day, you know, I told C.J. already, it’s just the work. I just put the work in. Don’t forget the feeling, because let it fuel you to where you want to go moving forward for this next season.”
We’ll see if Houston’s star linebackers’ words ring true for Stroud in 2026.
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