To break through the impenetrable barrier of greatness at the top of the AFC, a quarterback must possess unique qualities. C.J. Stroud seems up to the task despite only playing ten games in his professional career.
Up until the last few weeks, Cincinnati supporters undoubtedly had this game tabbed as a surefire victory for Stroud and the Texans against the Bengals. However, Stroud turned in an outstanding effort, defeating Cincinnati and Joe Burrow to lead Houston to a 30-27 victory and the game’s winning field goal drive.
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QB “head-to-head” matchups fall in the middle of “the Pro Bowl is a legitimate game” and “watching the NFL draft on Day 3 is essential” in terms of significant hype. Quarterbacks never play together on the field simultaneously. Even the most famous rivalries—consider the instantly iconic “13 seconds” Chiefs-Bills playoff game—are more about “anything you can do, I can do better” than they are about face-to-face competition.
By that measure, therefore, Stroud recognised Burrow’s genius and elevated him. Trenton Irwin was the recipient of a stunning 32-yard touch throw from Burrow to start the scoring for the day.
The Cincinnati audience was stunned into silence when Stroud and the Texans answered by hanging 20 points without answering the Bengals. Supporters have witnessed Stroud perform similar feats in the past—he attended a state university around 100 miles away for his college education—but witnessing him accomplish it as an NFL rookie is a whole other story.
After a quarterback reaches a certain level, wins and stats don’t mean anything. Instead of yards or completions, postseason success and rings are what define the best players in the game. What record Tom Brady and Peyton Manning have against each other matters not to anyone. (Brady won nine games in the regular season, while Peyton won three of the five playoff contests.) The amount of Lombardis is what counts, and Brady had the upper hand in that matchup 7-2 and 4-2 when both were active.
We should definitely wait until Stroud has played in at least one Super Bowl before holding him to that standard—it’s just too soon to make such a determination. Burrow, though, is starting to approach that area; in his first three seasons, he has already played in one Super Bowl and two conference titles.
Burrow continues to be the NFL’s greatest magician, able to wriggle out of a tight spot and conjure up genius out of insanity. Witness, for example, his touchdown in the final seconds of Sunday’s third quarter, when he found Ja’Marr Chase for a 64-yard score by flicking his wrist and tossing the ball nearly 50 yards into the air.
Furthermore, Stroud still has some beginner problems to resolve. In order to cut the deficit to three points with fewer than four minutes remaining in the game and facing third-and-two, Stroud threw an interception, just his second of the year, which the Bengals converted into a score.
In the last play before the two-minute warning, Burrow struck Tyler Boyd for a breakaway 64-yard gain after the Bengals forced a punt. The Bengals were able to barely muster the game-winning field goal at the Texans’ 7.
With 93 seconds remaining, Stroud was able to move the Texans into field goal range in just 88 of those seconds. With six plays and 51 passes for 55 yards, Stroud set up a play that provided rookie Matt Ammendola with 38 yards to boot the winning field goal.
“I just told DeMeco [Ryans], the head coach, ‘Man, I got you.'” “After the game, we’re going to win,” Stroud declared. “He told me he trusted me, looking me in the eye.”
Stroud completed 23 of 39 passes for 356 yards passing, one touchdown coming from a throw, one from rushing, and one interception. The Texans’ current win total of five, however, is the most significant number of the afternoon. This is a significant improvement over their 2023 record of three wins.
If Stroud hasn’t already been mentioned in relation to MVP, he soon will be. According to ESPN Stats & Info, his 2,626 passing yards this season rank third in NFL history through a rookie’s first nine starts, behind only Andrew Luck (2,631 in 2012) and Justin Herbert (2,699 in 2020). More importantly, for the record, the Texans under Stroud have now gone 4-1 this season versus winning clubs.
At least not in the regular season, Houston’s 2023 roster isn’t too loaded with elite quarterbacks. It’s likely that Stroud will start every Texans game as the superior quarterback going forward, which is an incredible turnaround for a rookie. That being said, the question isn’t whether Stroud ranks among the top quarterbacks in the league. The only thing to wonder is where he falls on the list.
