AFC South titles, 12+ wins, AFC Championship aspirations, and a potential Super Bowl win? We haven't even added in the Most Valuable Player Award to the conversation set, but all of those things and more seem to be in the grasp of C.J. Stroud. Never mind he's only entering his age 23 seasons. Disregard the fact he's only entering his second season in the league.
No, the sports world has pretty much said that anything that can be done by Stroud will be done by Stroud. To say those aren't lofty aspirations and expectations would be an understatement. Stroud went from a rookie in 2023 to one of the potential faces of the league in 2024.
The young quarterback has more expectations of him than anyone else in the league at his age and level of experience. It's not like he lacks the talent or skill to do the job. We've seen him be great already, why not expect more of the same? While raising the bar as well.
Can Stroud live up to the hype? Sure, a Super Bowl is far more of a team effort than anything else, but an MVP is more in Stroud's control than not. The Ohio State alum can produce. With the addition of Stefon Diggs, the emergence of Nico Collins, a returning Dalton Schultz, and hopefully a healthy Tank Dell, Stroud will have more than enough targets to take advantage of.
It's not out of the realm of possibility, however, that Stroud can achieve such grand feats in his second season. After all, some of the best players of all time have done just that. Jim Brown, a running back, won the MVP award when he was 21 and 22 years old.
Walter Payton and Emmett Smith, two other running backs, won the MVP when they were 23 and 24 respectively. Contemporary quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes won the MVP when they were 22 and 23 respectively. An achievement that iconic quarterback, Dan Marino, also achieved.
It's a stretch to expect Stroud to join such a lofty company so young, but it isn't out of the realm of possibility. With the additions to the team and the idea that Stroud can make a leap talent-wise, yes, we think Stroud can live up to the hype that's been placed upon him in just year two.