C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
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C.J. Stroud #7 of the Houston Texans takes the field before the AFC Divisional Playoffs against the New England Patriots.
The Houston Texans have been consistent when it comes to C.J. Stroud and vice versa. Despite that, the 2023 second overall pick has been bandied about in trade speculation since the 2025 season ended.
That idea seemed destined to see an uptick as the NFL combine arrives this week.
Texans general manager Nick Caserio met with the media on Tuesday and delivered the headlining sentiments regarding the situation.
C.J. Stroud Trade Speculation Gets Update From Texans
C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
GettyC.J. Stroud #7 of the Houston Texans takes the field before a game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Caserio has been the Texans’ GM since 2021, and has seen what life is like without Stroud under center on numerous occasions since then. It should come as no surprise, then, that he remains invested in his highest draft pick to date.
Caserio called talk of the Texans trading Stroud “moronic,” leaving no doubt about their stance.
“He’s our quarterback. He ain’t going anywhere,” Caserio told reporters on February 24. “We have a lot of confidence, a lot of belief [in Stroud], and I’d say the philosophy me and DeMeco [Ryans] have, we’re going to support our players and do everything we can to kind of help them.”
Caserio, who jokingly left anything beyond 2026 open to speculation, emphasized that the NFL is “about ups and downs” and that “nothing’s perfect,” noting that no team went undefeated.
He also said that it was all about how players respond to adversity.
Stroud has handled his rough patch well, speaking candidly about his poor postseason play. He threw 5 interceptions and fumbled 5 times, twice losing the ball on the latter.
Still, if his message was not clear enough, Caserio expressed there was “no lost” confidence in Stroud, and used a stock market reference that further suggested the Texans will put even more resources around their 24-year-old QB.
“Look, the stock market has been going down for five days. So, everybody’s probably panic-selling,” Caserio said. “Really, what you should do, is you may invest in more. So, but anyways, we have a lot of confidence in C.J., have got a lot of confidence in our players, and I’m glad he’s our quarterback.”
That will require some effort.
The Texans enter the offseason over the salary cap and will need to strip some players away and/or rework contracts to create much-needed wiggle room.
Nick Caserio Unwavering on C.J. Stroud
C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
GettyC.J. Stroud #7 of the Houston Texans leaves the field after defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Wild Card Playoffs.
Tuesday’s remarks were really a reiteration of the sentiments that Caserio expressed about Stroud during his season-ending press conference.
“Every player, the offseason is about improvement, and what are some of the things that you can do better? C.J. had a really good season. He’s done a lot of great things. Done a lot of great things for his team, a lot of great things for this organization,” Caserio told reporters in January.
“C.J. played good football this year.”
Caserio noted that the AFC Divisional Playoff game against the New England Patriots was not the Texans’ best outing as a team, but also cited turnovers as the culprit.
Stroud’s part in the outcome cannot be denied, and Caserio has repeatedly made it clear they cannot have that happen and expect to have success. None of that has equated to the Texans being ready to move on from Stroud, though.