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CJ Stroud's woes continue as the Texans succumb to the resurgent Jets

Houston Texans quarterback CJ Stroud struggled in Thursday night's loss to the New York Jets. Overall, it wasn't a great season for the second-year QB. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Houston Texans quarterback CJ Stroud was celebrated all last season, and rightly so. He had one of the best rookie seasons ever.

And the normal conclusion was that Stroud would be even better in his second season. The NFL doesn't always work that way.

Stroud was good, but not great in the wake of that rookie season. It hadn't mattered much because he and the rest of the Texans had done enough to start the season 6-2. But against a 2-6 New York Jets team on Thursday night, Stroud had to lead his team to victory, and he couldn't.

The Jets won an ugly game 21-13 in which Aaron Rodgers finally came back to life after a poor first half and scored three touchdowns after halftime. The Texans showed very little offense. Houston was without injured receivers Nico Collins and Stefon Diggs, and that's a viable excuse. Still, it was a continuation of some regression for Stroud in his second season.

Both teams struggled to start the game. The Texans struggled with a lot of injuries, which was one of the main reasons they didn't advance. The Jets are simply not a very good football team.

Neither team scored a goal until well into the second quarter. The Jets thought they had scored, but rookie receiver Malachi Corley dropped the ball. Corley ran an end-around, his second career touchdown, for an apparent 19-yard touchdown. But just before he scored, he let up, dropped the ball in celebration and had not yet crossed the goal line. This huge mistake cost the Jets a touchdown and possession, as the ball rolled out of the end zone and caused a Texans touchback.

But the Texans didn't take advantage of that. Joe Mixon scored a 3-yard touchdown and that was the only score of the first half. Houston was unable to extend its lead any further. Stroud didn't produce enough big plays. But the Jets were even worse in the first half, trailing 7-0.

Aaron Rodgers had 32 yards passing in the first half. With at least 10 attempts, it was the fewest passing yards Rodgers ever had in the first half of his career. At the end of the half, an increasingly excited Jets crowd began chanting “Sell the Team,” hoping team owner Woody Johnson was listening.

The Jets needed a second-half surge to calm the crowd.

The Jets finally did some good things in the second half.

The best came from Garrett Wilson. Wilson made a one-handed grab as he crossed the field in the third quarter and ran into the goal for the score. In the fourth quarter, he made a more impressive one-handed grab into the end zone on third-and-19, catching it on his backhand and somehow getting his shin in the air to make the touchdown possible. The Jets led 14-10 after Wilson's second touchdown.

After that, the Jets hit a huge break. The Texans made a field goal, but the Jets received an unnecessary roughness penalty for hitting the snapper. But Houston couldn't get a first down, and then Ka'imi Fairbairn somehow missed a 27-yard field goal and hit the crossbar. However, Fairbairn wouldn't miss a field goal if Stroud took advantage of the Jets' penalty and led his team to a touchdown. Rodgers' third touchdown after a nice play against Davante Adams sealed the victory.

The Texans (6-3) are still a good team and probably on their way to an AFC South title. But Stroud hasn't emerged as an MVP candidate as some had suspected. He had a passer rating of 100.8 as a rookie last season. This season, he was down to 95.6 heading into Thursday's game, and that number will drop a bit again after he struggled to go 11-for-30 for 191 yards on a night without touchdowns.

He had some bad games this season, like the Jets' loss, an 86-yard game in a loss to the Packers, and a two-interception day in a loss to the Vikings. He's still a good quarterback, he just took a small step back in his second season. He still has plenty of time to recover, even if he will be without Diggs, who is out for the season with a torn ACL.

Thursday evening just wasn't his night. Stroud set the bar very high in a historic rookie season and up to this point, that bar has been difficult to overcome.

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  • Tale of two halves

    Final statistics

    Texans: 322 yards of offense

    CJ Stroud 11-30, 115 yards

    Joe Mixon 106 yards, 1 touchdown, 24 carries

    Tank Dell 6 catches, 126 yards

    Jets: 293 yards of offense

    Aaron Rodgers 22-32, 211 yards, 3 TD

    Davante Adams 7 catches, 91 yards, 1 TD

    Garrett Wilson 9 catches, 90 yards, 2 TD

    Breece Hall's 74 yards, 15 carries

  • FINAL: Jets 21, Texans 13

    Truly a tale of two halves. The Jets looked like a completely different team in the second half, while the Texans never really got going with their offense.

    Jets win, 21-13. They improve to 3-6. Houston falls to 6-3.

  • CJ Stroud was sacked for the eighth time

    The Texans' drive stalls at the Jets' 11-yard line after CJ Stroud is sacked by Haason Reddick and Quinnen Williams.

    Houston needed two possessions anyway and conceded a 29-yard field goal from Ka'imi Fairbairn.

    Jets 21, Texans 13 with 0:30 remaining. Houston will now attempt an onside kick.

  • Wonderful and unlikely

    Garrett Wilson's one-handed 26-yard touchdown catch may have been the best of the NFL season so far, writes Frank Schwab.

    “The catch itself was wonderful. Wilson secured the ball with his backhand, using only one hand. But to then have the presence of mind to put his foot on the ground and then get his shin into play before his knee went out of bounds is indescribable.”

    The catch was also highly unlikely, according to NFL's Next Gen Stats:

  • Another push

    Maybe a more loving shove between Aaron Rodgers and interim coach Jeff Ulbrich after the Jets' touchdown?

  • TOUCHDOWN, Jets

    The Jets probably blocked this play. Davante Adams looked pretty good as he caught a 37-yard pass for a touchdown to take a 21-10 lead with 2:56 left in the fourth quarter.

  • Jets are driving and the clock is burning

    On 3rd-and-1 from the Jets' 44, Aaron Rodgers found Kenny Yeboah for a 12-yard gain and a first down. Yeboah is thrown out of bounds and the clock stops at 3:55. But the Texans have to worry about getting the ball back here.

  • Davante Adams returns to the game

    Davante Adams takes the field on 2nd-and-5 on the Jets' next possession.

  • Ka'imi Fairbairn misses the 27-yard field goal

    The Texans missed a great opportunity to score the go-ahead touchdown. Ka'imi Fairbairn kicked a 43-yard field goal, but the Jets were forced to incur an unnecessary roughness penalty that gave Houston an automatic first down.

    However, the Texans cannot reach the ball in the end zone and have to make do with another field goal attempt. But this time Fairbairn hits the left post and the attempted kick is useless.

  • Texans stop in the red zone

    On 2nd-and-7 from the 10-yard line, Joe Mixon takes a direct snap and throws to CJ Stroud, who runs into the end zone.

    To make matters worse, Stroud is sacked on the next play for a 15-yard loss by Micheal Clemons.

  • The Texans are coming right back

    Houston moves toward a score on the following possession. CJ Stroud hits Tank Dell for a 50-yard gain.

    Then, on 4th-and-1 from the Jets' 15-yard line, Joe Mixon ran for two yards.

  • A closer look at Garrett Wilson's TD catch

    Garrett Wilson's TD catch didn't come on a throw at the goal line. It came after a 26-yard throw from Aaron Rodgers.

  • TOUCHDOWN, Jets

    After review, the officials overturned the on-field decision and concluded that Garrett Wilson hit his left shin on the field. A great one-handed grab on a 26-yard throw means a touchdown.

    The Jets lead 14-10 at the start of the fourth quarter.

  • Jets possible TD under review

    Garrett Wilson caught a pass in the back corner of the end zone that looked like a touchdown but was ruled incomplete. The game is currently being reviewed to see if Wilson can get both feet into the game

  • Davante Adams is being evaluated for a concussion

    After being examined in the medical tent, Davante Adams went to the locker room. He is being evaluated for a possible concussion.

  • On 4th down the Jets try again

    The Jets tried again on fourth down, this time with a 4th-and-1 from the Houston 22. A play-action fake didn't fool the Texans' defense and Aaron Rodgers nearly threw an interception after a scramble.

    However, New York is saved by an illegal contact penalty on Derek Stingley Jr.

  • Davante Adams' 4th down catch

    Here's the play that may have injured Davante Adams. A 17-yard catch for a first down, but he took a big hit.

  • Davante Adams in the medical tent

    Davante Adams seemed fine on the sideline. But Prime Video's Kaylee Hartung reports that an employee asked for his helmet and accompanied him to the medical tent for an examination.

  • Jets get a fourth down

    The Jets try on 4th-and-2 from the Houston 48 and convert it with Aaron Rodgers hitting Davante Adams for a 17-yard gain.

    However, Adams was confused while tackling.

  • Field Goal: Texans 10, Jets 7

    Houston only managed 20 yards on its first drive of the second half, but it was enough for Ka'imi Fairbairn to score a 54-yard field goal.

    The Texans take back the lead 10-7.

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