The Houston Texans have managed some improbable wins en route to first place in the AFC South, but the magic ran out on Thursday night.
The Texans dropped to 6-3 after losing to the floundering New York Jets, and according to Pro Football Talk, star quarterback CJ Stroud has had enough of his teammates not buying in.
“I would say we just got to honestly play football better, execute better, stop pointing fingers and realize that at the end of the day this is not winning football,” Stroud said after the loss, per Pro Football Talk.
“We can’t keep squeezing our way by every game, we are a really good football team, we have a lot of really good players. Once we buy into the systems and what is being coached, and also we have to have leadership to take over.
“I believe this isn’t the end, but it’s definitely a great wakeup call for us to tighten up the ship. This is now playoff football, it’s November-December, this is the chunk of our schedule, a lot of great teams we are playing on prime time and we got to be able to find ways to win.”
With Stroud saying that his teammates are pointing fingers, it begs the question of who the fingers are being pointed at. The likely answer? Stroud himself.
A product of Ohio State, the odds that Stroud had the necessary tools to succeed in the NFL were against him, as it’s widely accepted that the school cannot produce NFL-capable quarterbacks. Stroud didn’t do himself or the school’s reputation any favors with his performance on Thursday.
The second-year quarterback finished 11-for-30 and failed to reach 200 yards passing or record a throwing touchdown.
Hopefully, C.J. Stroud will learn to do his work in the practice facility rather than making headlines in the media.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.