C.J. Stroud played like a man possessed in Saturday's divisional round game against the New England Patriots. The problem was that for a lot of the first half, the Houston Texans quarterback was a vessel for the spirit of playoff Jake Delhomme.
It was a hideous afternoon for Stroud in the Texans' 28-16 loss. His first quarter was whatever: Houston's first two drives of the game resulted in a three-and-out and a field goal, respectively, and his first interception was a bad throw, but New England cornerback Carlton Davis III made a great play on the ball and kept his knee in bounds. Besides, that turnover felt less costly when Patriots QB Drake Maye lost a fumble two plays into the subsequent drive. After a touchdown catch by Char—sorry, Christian Kirk, Houston even held a 10-7 lead early in the second quarter. Then it turned into a horror show for poor C.J.
If Stroud just takes the sack on this play-action pass on first down, the Texans drive still might have stalled out. Maybe it would have ended in a punt. But he wouldn't have thrown an absolutely atrocious ball waiting to be snagged by cornerback Marcus Jones, who ran it back 26 yards for a pick-six. That gave the Patriots a lead they wouldn't relinquish for the rest of the night, and Stroud still wasn't done throwing picks.
Four plays later, a deflected pass ended up in the hands of Pats safety Craig Woodson. Then there was a Texans three-and-out where Stroud failed to complete a pass. Then the Patriots scored another touchdown—on offense this time—and Stroud threw his fourth pick, and there was sincere conversation about whether backup QB Davis Mills should step in for the second half.
For most of the second quarter, Stroud looked like he shouldn't be in an NFL game. He was jumpy and visibly uncomfortable because of something: the defensive coverages, the loud New England crowd, the wintry mix coming down—maybe some combination of all three. At halftime, he was 10-of-26 for 124 passing yards, one TD, and four picks. It felt entirely possible that he'd throw four more in the second half.
What kept the Texans in the game was that the Patriots' QB kept struggling with ball security, too. Maye fumbled four times and lost the ball twice; he also threw an interception, though that was on a Hail Mary right before halftime. But the Houston Texans defense was as fearsome as expected. They continued to hassle Maye, stall drives, and contain the run. Unfortunately for them, their offense kept giving the Patriots great field position.
Davis Mills did not get his chance at playoff glory. Stroud remained in the game for the second half, and while he still wasn't great, he didn't throw any more picks. He looked relatively more settled down on some of his passes. He was also running out of receivers. Nico Collins was already inactive because of a concussion, and over the course of the game, tight ends Dalton Schultz and Cade Stover left with injuries. By the end of the third quarter, Houston cut the lead to 21-16, but the Patriots closed the door with Maye's gorgeous deep throw to Kayshon Boutte, who caught a 32-yard touchdown with one hand. That gave the Pats a 12-point lead, but for the Texans offense on this night, it might as well have been 50.
With the victory, the Patriots now get to face the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship Game next weekend. If New England's defense could do this to Stroud, a totally respectable starting QB, it's frightening to think what they might do to a QB2 who hasn't played a meaningful snap of football in two years.
