CJ Stroud explains thought process while facing criticism during NFL Draft process

CJ Stroud has put his name on the map very early in his NFL career with what he has done in his first four games with the Houston Texans. It’s no surprise to him, though, as he always knew this was coming his way, regardless of what others had to say about him previously.

Stroud joined ‘The Pat McAfee Show’ on Thursday and addressed the negative pre-draft buzz that he received this spring. From his standpoint, he couldn’t have cared less because those people who doubted him didn’t know him. He knew who he was and was confident in that without having to match himself up with anybody else.

“I actually heard a quote,” explained Stroud. “Deion Sanders said a couple of weeks ago – I don’t know verbatim what it was – but he was basically saying y’all ain’t making me so how are you gonna break me?”

“For me, my dad always taught me. He gave me a really, really strong quote that I always use now – ‘Comparison is the thief of joy’. So I seen how people were doing me,” said Stroud. “But I was like, ‘Man, if they weren’t saying anything crazy then it’d probably be a problem.'”

Stroud also isn’t concerned with doing anything but showing out for himself and his supporters. That’s because, in his eyes, those who may criticize him don’t know the position he’s in to begin with.

“For me, I don’t try to prove anybody wrong. I want to prove myself right and people who believe in me right,” Stroud said. “If you try to prove everybody wrong? You’ll be sleepless, restless because everybody is always going to have something to say. And I always tell people everybody knows how to be an NFL quarterback, an offensive coordinator – be who we are every day.”

If proving himself right is Stroud’s mission, he’s doing a great job of it as a rookie. In a 2-2 start as the Texans’ QB1, he has thrown for over 1,200 passing yards, which is fifth most in the entire league heading into Week 5. He also has six touchdowns, two apiece in each of his last three outings, and no interceptions.

Stroud understands the path that he’s on and the position he finds himself in at the moment. Now, as he continues down that path, his only hope is to see those critiques eventually turn into praise once they start to see him in a different way.

“For me, man, I just knew if I put in the work, that I trust myself, and I knew that God put me in the right situation, which I feel like he has done? Man, I got nothing but success on the way,” Stroud said.

“I’m super blessed to have the mindset to be able to let all that stuff go,” said Stroud. “I don’t care. Like, at the end of the day, those people have a job to do. The more criticism they give out, the more they probably get paid. But I’m making them write a different story now.”