C.J. Stroud
Houston TexansC.J. Stroud has 1,867 passing yards, 11 touchdown passes, 1 interception and 80 rushing yards in 7 games for the Houston Texans this season through Week 8, 18.7 PPR points a game (updated November 4, 2026).
Model Score by season
Up 2.3 from last season.
How good he is at what he is supposed to be doing, out of 100. Not a projection of what he will do next, and not a read on his contract. Median is about 70, and a 95 is rare. How it is built →
STM Take
A high-ceiling starter whose season swings wildly year to year.
The case for
- Rookie year STTM #7 tier 2 + Offensive Rookie of the Year remains the cleanest year-one case in the top 25.
- 62 career TDs against 25 INTs on 1,454 attempts is a top-tier ratio for a third-year starter.
The worry
- Sophomore drop to STTM #40 tier 8 is the worst year-two collapse of any tier-1 rookie on the current board.
- 2025 game logs include three games under 10 PPR in the back half, suggesting the supporting cast is still the limiting factor.
What to watch: Whether Houston's pass-protection and receiver investments produce a tier-3 or better season; the talent is bracketed by the cast.
Full take and bio
Stroud's 2025 line at STTM #22 tier 6 is the third distinct tier he has finished in across three NFL seasons (tier 2 rookie, tier 8 sophomore, tier 6 now). The career has one of the widest variance bands of any starter on the board. The rookie ceiling is real; the question is which version of him 2026 shows.
Stroud was born in Rancho Cucamonga, California, joined Snoop Dogg's youth league at twelve, and lived in a small apartment above a storage facility after his father was sentenced under California's three-strikes law. He played at Ohio State, was a Heisman finalist in both 2021 and 2022, and Houston took him second overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. As a rookie he won Offensive Rookie of the Year and led the Texans to a division title and playoff win.
Comps
The players whose size, testing and production looked most like his at the same point in their careers. The percent is how close.
Plays like: Jim Everett, Dan Marino, Drew Bledsoe. Built like: Tyson Bagent, Aidan O'Connell, Marcus Mariota. Coming out: Mac Jones, Landry Jones, Brandon Weeden.
Of his 20 closest coming out: 4 stars, 4 starters, 9 backups, 3 didn't stick.
C.J. Stroud Injury StatusNot listed
C.J. Stroud is not on the injury report as of Nov 4. Source: the official NFL injury report, refreshed daily.
This season · 7 games
18.7 fantasy points a game, 131 PPR on the season. Every game on the Game Log, every season on Career. Advanced numbers are EPA and Next Gen Stats.
Contract2026 cap
Every year of the deal, the dead money and what a cut or trade saves on the Contract tab.
Fantasy outlookWeek 9
Our rest-of-season board has C.J. Stroud at QB15; the model has 153 PPR points left for him this season.
Price a trade for him on the fantasy trade calculator, or see the whole board on the Fantasy hub.
Draft & College
Round 1, pick 2 to the Houston Texans in 2023, out of Ohio State (Big Ten). He went about where consensus had him.
In college, 2021-2022, 25 games: 7,990 pass yds, 86 TD, 10 INT, 67.3% completions.
Recruited
Class of 2020 · Quarterback · High school: Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Ohio StateHis offer board, and the recruits whose boards look like it now →