CJ Stroud names his Top 5 current NFL quarterbacks
Rankings are completely subjective. They vary from person to person and discussions around them can get very animated depending on how an individual sees it. However, for the most part, Houston Texans QB CJ Stroud had no problem when it came to naming his top five when it came to NFL quarterbacks.
Stroud shared his take in a clip from those at the ‘Caps Off’ Podcast. He said ‘it’s hard’ because there’s ‘a lot of dogs out there.’ Still, by the end of the clip, the Texans rookie got to a very convincing five in no particular order.
- Jalen Hurts – Philadelphia Eagles
- Patrick Mahomes – Kansas City Chiefs
- Joe Burrow – Cincinnati Bengals
- Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills
- Justin Fields – Chicago Bears
Stroud also named Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson as another worthy name that was up for debate.
Three of Stroud’s names are fairly indisputable when it comes to football conversation. Mahomes, Burrow, and Allen have been running things at the quarterback position for some time now. A fourth name in Hurts truly burst onto the scene last season with Philadelphia as he guided them to a Super Bowl berth and became the highest-paid player in the history of the sport.
The fifth name in Fields may be worthy of a discussion though. After his first season in Chicago, he kicked it up as a second-year player for the Bears as he flashed plenty of his dual-threat talent. Still, more than anything else, this was likely as much about respect as anything considering they were teammates for one season at Ohio State.
Again, quarterback rankings are all in the eye of the beholder. Even so, Stroud put together a very solid list ahead of what he hopes will be a rookie season that will justify that he can reach that level someday too.
Stroud impressing early in Houston
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. Now, the Texans coaches are heaping praise on him as he’s been taking reps with the first team in organized team activities.
“CJ 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, saying the former Buckeye is “already way, way ahead of pace” with his footwork and timing. Meanwhile, DC Matt Burke. has also been impressed with Stroud’s high football IQ and his never-ending 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.”