Houston Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud is looking at the positives after a rough performance in his NFL preseason debut.
The first week of the NFL preseason kicked off on Thursday night with two games. One of those games was between the Houston Texans and New England Patriots. For those NFL Draft fans, this allowed them to get their first at one of the top picks and quarterback prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft in C.J. Stroud.
On Thursday night, the second-overall pick had the opportunity to show that he's worthy of being the starter over Davis Mills, who is competing for the job. Stroud played in two series, and they weren't great. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was aggressive in sending his defense to Stroud, as he was pressured quite a lot and sacked once for a loss of 15 yards. Then, there was a brutal interception thrown to cornerback Jalen Mills.
Even after the rough showing, Stroud looked at the positives after the game, telling reporters that it "felt good to get hit again."
C.J. Stroud looks at the positives after rough preseason debut for Texans
"Kind of a crazy opportunity to be able to go out, my first NFL stadium, my first NFL game, and just a lot of things that I've been through to just get to that moment," said Stroud, h/t NFL.com. "It was just special. Of course just wish I didn't make one mistake on one certain play, but other than that, I thought I played solid.
"Felt good to get hit again and just get back in the groove. I just think that's what preseason is for."
Stroud completed two-of-four pass attempts for 13 yards.
There are going to be some growing pains for rookie quarterbacks, especially as they make the transition from college to the pros. It's still very early on to determine whether he will start the season as QB1 on the depth chart, or if he will be on the sidelines as the backup.
While Stroud had a less-than-stellar showing, Mills put up better numbers. While yes, there were some ball placement issues during the game, he did show off a connection with rookie Tank Dell. Mills completed 9-of-12 pass attempts for 99 yards and a touchdown.
There are still two more preseason games to go for Stroud, with his next coming against the Miami Dolphins on Aug. 19.