C.J. Stroud was not playing well from the beginning of the Houston Texans’ heartbreaking Christmas Day loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Stroud robbed the Texans of a possible scoring opportunity on Houston’s first drive of the game by taking a terrible sack to convert a third-and-5 in Baltimore territory into a fourth-and-15. He missed two throws that should have been made on the second drive, resulting in a hasty punt. From there, things didn’t get much better. As the Texans were crushed 31-2 in a game that was never even close to competitive, Stroud would go on to complete just 17 of 31 passes for 185 yards, an interception, and five sacks, recording a 59.2 passer rating and a 13.2 QBR.
I’m terrible. According to KPRC2, Stroud stated, “It was probably one of my worst games of my entire career.” “Just came out without a hitch. There was no energy. didn’t take the lead in the attack as I ought to have. I have to constantly examine myself in the mirror, be honest with myself, and admit that I’m not good enough today. It is what it is, you know. I have to keep going even though I can’t put my head down.”
Stroud accepted full responsibility for everything that went wrong, including his receivers’ lack of agreement. “I simply kept going missing. simply wasn’t throwing. I had to figure out how to get stronger and make those throws at the same time. It was ultimately up to me to make the throw when guys are open, despite some misunderstandings between myself and some of the receivers.
Four days prior to this game, Stroud and the Texans had suffered a defeat to the Chiefs, losing wide receiver Tank Dell for the rest of the season due to a horrific knee injury. Additionally, compared to early in the season, Baltimore’s defence has been performing noticeably better lately. Nevertheless, Stroud blamed himself for Houston’s offensive failure, which was by far the worst of the season.