Trevor Lawrence just made things super awkward for the Houston Texans and C.J. Stroud

The Houston Texans have one of the best young quarterbacks in the league with C.J. Stroud. That reality comes with a load of good things that the team and fans will get to enjoy. Dynamic play, come-from-behind wins, and if we're lucky, Super Bowl victories. It also comes with a pretty daunting reality; Stroud is going to get paid. Now, quarterbacks are the face of the league, so it's understandable that they get paid more than most, but the degree to which we're seeing quarterbacks get paid is off the charts.

So off the charts that it feels unsustainable, at least if you're trying to build a winner. A lot of very mediocre, older, quarterbacks are making contracts that bog down and limit the team's resources. That's just the way things are right now. So if mediocre quarterbacks are getting paid, you better believe younger, better quarterbacks are as well.

The Jacksonville Jaguars just made Trevor Lawrence one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the league, tied with Joe Burrow of the Cincinnati Bengals. Burrow is a top-three quarterback in the league, but Lawrence isn't. So the leap in pay sure seems to suggest that Lawrence is going to improve considerably.

Lawrence hasn't been awful, but he's a very average quarterback through three years. That's not to take away from his upside and potential but through three seasons, Lawrence hasn't done anything to make any of us think he's that good, that fast.

So if Lawrence, someone with some serious holes in his game is getting $55 million per year, then the Houston Texans are going to break the bank to sign C.J. Stroud to an extension. Assuming Stroud continues to play as well in 2024 and beyond, as he did in 2023, then he's going to get the biggest contract in NFL history by 2026.

The Texans have already prepped for this and have made moves that ensure they can shed some salary in about two years. Stroud may very well be worth every penny he's given if he's able to win a Super Bowl. After all, the best quarterback in the NFL, Patrick Mahomes, has proven his value. Though to ask anyone to repeat that kind of success Mahomes has seen so far, especially so early in Stroud's career, is a tall order.

Lawrence's new deal just put the pressure on the Houston Texans to win now, simply because we don't know what kind of contract Stroud will get when it's all said and done.