4 Houston Texans who have the most to prove in 2024

C.J. Stroud

As with Will Anderson, it seems odd that C.J. Stroud is on this list. Already considered a Top 5 quarterback in the NFL right now and he's only in year two. That's a lot of pressure for a young man to carry on his shoulders and even more so when you realize that it's AFC Title Game or bust for Stroud. The Houston Texans window for a championship is open now, and Stroud has to up his game to make sure the team can make the most of the time they have.

That's an impossible load to carry. So can Stroud carry it? We'll find out. It's not just the enormous responsibilities that Stroud carries with him, it's his ability to replicate success that gets him on this list. We have utter faith in Stroud that he can have the same kind of season in year two that he had in year one, but we can't just speak as if it's a foregone conclusion. The season still has to happen and Stroud still has to play.

We've seen so many "elite" quarterbacks fluctuate over their careers, case in point Lamar Jackson, guys how are so good they can win an MVP award or so bad that you wonder if you can actually win a championship with him? We expect Stroud can play well, but we still have to see it across more than one season for us to really believe he's that elite of a player. While we don't think he is, there's still a slight chance that he's a one-hit-wonder.

So he has to be as good as he ever was in 2024 to help cement his place among the NFL's elite players.