Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud made something out of nothing to spark Houston’s 99-yard go-ahead touchdown drive against the Chargers in the first game of Super Wild Card Weekend.
Facing a third-and-16 from Houston’s 17-yard line, Stroud failed to handle Texans center Jarrett Patterson’s high snap, which went over his right shoulder. Stroud was the first player to the loose ball, and instead of falling on it for a big loss, he calmly scooped it, rolled to his right and delivered a deep strike from inside his 10-yard line wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson for a 39-yard gain.
Five plays later, Houston scored a touchdown to turn a six-point deficit into a 7-6 lead.
Stroud’s improvised play completely altered the game’s outlook. Up to that point, the Chargers had dominated (besides on the scoreboard). During Houston’s first five drives, it gained 54 yards and turned the ball over twice.
Following Stroud’s remarkable play, the Texans gained 94 yards on 10 plays, including a five-play, 45-yard drive to set up kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn’s 41-yard field goal with three seconds left in the half that gave Houston a 10-6 halftime lead.
Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans spoke with CBS Sports’ Evan Washburn entering halftime, and he had a simple explanation for what sparked the team’s first-half turnaround.
“C.J. Stroud changed,” Ryans said, adding that the second-year quarterback “put the team on his back.”
Stroud finished the first half 14-of-23 for 180 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Stroud, the Associated Press 2023 Offensive Rookie of the Year, had an underwhelming 2024 regular season. He threw for fewer yards and more interceptions, and he had a worse completion percentage than he did as a rookie.
The version of Stroud we saw at the end of the first half is the one we thought we’d see all season. He picked one heck of a time to arrive.
