The 1st quarter of Sunday's matchup between the Houston Texans and Denver Broncos has been exactly as advertised, with defenses dominating and points hard to come by. But unfortunately, this hard-hitting contest has already claimed it's first high-profile casualty, and we're not yet even 20 minutes into the game.
Leading 3-0, CJ Stroud and the Houston Texans offense had the ball and faced a 3rd down. On the play, Stroud scrambled for the 1st down marker, and as he gave himself up on the play, sliding a couple of yards short of the line gain, Stroud took a massive hit from Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine.
After staying down on the field for a couple of minutes, Stroud was able to walk off the field with the assistance of coaches and trainers. He made his way into the blue medical tent briefly before heading back to the locker room.
Although no official statement has been made about Stroud's status for the rest of the afternoon, one would assume the third-year quarterback probably isn't going to be making a return in this crucial AFC tilt.
On Denver's subsequent offensive drive, Bo Nix was picked off by Texans safety Calen Bullock. On Houston's first drive without Stroud, backup quarterback Davis Mills orchestrated a 11-play scoring drive that ended with Ka'imi Fairbairn's second field goal of the game.