C.J. Stroud is impressing in Houston early

Former Ohio State signal-caller C.J. Stroud was one of the most gifted quarterback prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft class. That’s precisely why the Houston Texans decided to trade up to draft him with the No. 2 overall selection in this year’s draft. It shouldn’t be surprising that the former Ohio State star is turning heads early in camp. The Texans coaches heaped praise on him earlier this week and he’s been taking reps with the first team in organized team activities.

“C.J. is progressing well,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said this week, via Brooks Kubena of the Houston Chronicle. “Each day, he continues to get better, continues to get more comfortable with the verbiage of the offense and his command of the huddle. I thought this week he has been really good, coming off of a long weekend. It was very eye-opening how on it he was. . . . He did an awesome job in our situational periods, So, he is definitely progressing in the right direction, and the sky is the limit for him.”

Texans’ quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson has also been impressed with Stroud. He said that the former Buckeye is “already way, way ahead of pace” with his footwork and timing.

Stroud has been asking plenty of questions early in the process and picking the brain of Texans’ defensive coordinator Matt Burke. Burke has also been impressed with Stroud’s high football IQ and his neverending thirst for knowledge.

“His deliberateness and intent to try to get better — he’s literally grabbing everybody he can on the field,” Burke said. “So, he’s been very sort of intentional about learning and just learning defense, too, like what did you call there, what was that coverage, or what did you do here. I respect that from him.”

C.J. Stroud has been an elite quarterback prospect for years

Stroud threw for 3,688 yards, 41 touchdowns and six interceptions this past season. He put Ohio State in position to defeat eventual national champion Georgia in the CFP semifinal, leading them down to the Bulldog 32-yard line before kicker Noah Ruggles missed a 50-yard field goal with three seconds remaining.

Stroud did all he could in that game to finish with 348 yards and four touchdowns on 23-of-34 (67.6%) passing. He ended his college career with 8,198 yards and a touchdown-to-interception ratio of more than 7-to-1 in 25 games.

Stroud played high school football for Rancho Cucamonga in California, where he was a five-star prospect. He ranked as the No. 39 overall prospect and No. 3 quarterback in the 2020 class according to the On3 Industry Rating, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Stroud is a two-time Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and Quarterback of the Year. He was also a second team All-American in 2022.

On3’s Chandler Vessels also contributed to this article.