Through the first seven weeks of the season, C.J. Stroud hasn’t quite been able to replicate the success he had as a rookie, and a big part of that comes down to Houston’s struggles with their offensive line.
The Texans simply aren’t giving Stroud the protection he needs to do what he does best, and the whole offense is feeling the impact.
Head coach DeMeco Ryans spoke openly about the situation on Wednesday, emphasizing the need for improvement. “It has to get fixed,” Ryans said via ESPN. “I know what we’re coaching and what we’re asking them to do, but it’s just not showing up on tape. It’s not one person — it’s the whole thing. The entire offense, from top to bottom, needs to get it cleaned up.”
To put it nicely, the pass protection has been shaky. Stroud often finds himself under constant pressure, trying to make something happen while the pocket collapses around him. The issues were evident in a tough Week 3 loss to Minnesota and again in Week 7 against Green Bay, where Stroud managed just 10 completions for 86 yards on 21 attempts. According to NFL Research, the Packers pressured Stroud nearly 50 percent of the time, even though they blitzed on just 17.2 percent of his dropbacks.
It’s clear that these struggles would hurt any offense, and Houston’s no exception. Still, Stroud has been doing his best to work through it. Thanks to his talent and quick decision-making, the Texans rank 10th in passing yards per game. But it’s also obvious how much the lack of consistent protection is holding them back.
Advertisement
Latest Press Conference
We’re on Social Media
Fixing the protection isn’t an easy task, though. Offensive lines rely on all five players working in sync, and when defenses throw stunts and blitzes their way, the challenge only grows. Stroud acknowledged that on Sunday, taking some of the blame for the team’s passing issues. “The Packers rush as a unit,” he said on Wednesday. “They use a lot of twists up front, and we just have to settle down and try to level it out. But they did a good job. We need to improve in protection, and I need to be quicker with getting the ball out on time. It’s a combination of things.”
In Stroud’s defense, he’s not sitting in the pocket for too long. He’s doing his best to get the ball to his open receivers quickly, but it got harder when he lost his top target, Nico Collins, to a hamstring injury. Collins is expected to miss at least two more games, which means the Texans will have to find a way to adjust — starting with better protection.
Coach Ryans reiterated that fixing the protection is a team effort. “We have a lot of things to clean up with our protection, and it’s everyone’s responsibility — the O-line, tight ends, running backs,” Ryans said. “Everyone has to work together, be on the same page, and get the job done. We’ve had multiple weeks where the same issues have come up, and we need to fix them, starting with the coaches and down to the players, by finishing plays and executing better.”
Houston will be looking to make these adjustments before their rematch on Sunday against Indianapolis, a team that ranks near the bottom of the league in quarterback pressure rate. With the Colts only one game behind them in the AFC South standings, the Texans will need to step up. This could be the week things finally start to turn around.
