The Houston Texans are coming off a rather successful season. Though they failed to win the AFC South, Houston did make the playoffs with a 12-5 record. Quarterback C.J. Stroud and his teammates even won a playoff game.
However, there appears to be increasing scrutiny on Stroud. The former Ohio State star had an incredible rookie season, leading Houston to the first of three straight playoff berths. But his performances have declined since his rookie campaign.
The Texans still believe in the former second-overall pick. Not everyone believes in the 24-year-old, though. In fact, one radio host was stunned that the team didn’t move on from him this offseason.
Jason Smith Left Stunned by Texans’ Belief in C.J. Stroud
Fox Sports’ Jason Smith, who hosts “The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon,” made it known that he has no belief in the Ohio State product, and even said Houston should’ve found a new signal-caller.
“You’re coming off a playoff in which C.J. Stroud absolutely destroyed you,” Smith said. “In two games, the guy had 47 turnovers in the last two games in the playoffs. Luckily, they won one, but they couldn’t win the second one.”
“I look at the Texans, and they don’t have a lot of great playmakers. And I don’t know how good C.J. Stroud is. He looks like a guy who maybe peaked earlier in his career,” Smith continued. “C.J. Stroud has been on a slow decline; I’m surprised they brought him back… This (Texans) could be one of those surprise bad teams.”
“CJ Stroud has been on a steady decline… I CANNOT believe the Texans brought him back! The Texans are going to be surprisingly bad!” 📉
@howaboutafresca with a spicy take on CJ Stroud and the Texans outlook👀🔥 pic.twitter.com/iJgjyQjefP— FOX Sports Radio (@FoxSportsRadio) August 20, 2026
Smith’s concerns came after the news of Texans wideout Jayden Higgins suffering a season-ending injury in practice after he tore his ACL. Without him, Stroud has even fewer weapons, and that is a big concern.
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Stroud tossed for a little more than 3,000 yards in 2025. He also had 19 touchdowns, just missing the 20-touchdown mark for the first time in his career, and also threw 8 interceptions, cutting that mark down from 12 in 2024. Stroud also finished with the 15th-best QB impact score (76.6) last season, according to PFN’s QB Impact Metric.
The Texans were unable to catch the ascendant Jacksonville Jaguars in the division race. However, they dismantled Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card round. Unfortunately, their run ended in the Divisional Round against the New England Patriots.
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The Texans certainly believe they can go further in 2026. They have a vaunted defense with stars such as Will Anderson Jr. and Derek Stingley Jr. running the show. If the offense can match the defense’s effort, Houston could be a force in 2026.
