The Houston Texans escaped on Sunday, barely.
They nearly lost a miserable game to the lowly Las Vegas Raiders. It would've been a crushing blow to the Texans' playoff chances.
In the end, they pulled it out, 23-21. But there was plenty of reason for concern.
It starts with third-year quarterback C.J. Stroud. Still, two years after his amazing rookie season, Stroud hasn't appeared to have gotten better.
Stroud misses throws he shouldn't miss. He sometimes flails under pressure.
There's not a great excuse for Houston not moving the ball well against the Raiders. But Stroud never had the Texans' offense looking like it would deliver, and without a pick-six by superstar Derek Stingley Jr., Houston would've lost.
"The Texans didn't score an offensive touchdown until 7:41 remaining in the fourth quarter, and their defense allowed 21 points to the last-ranked scoring (14 points per game entering Sunday) and total offense (244)," ESPN's DJ Bien-Aime wrote after the game. "Quarterback C.J. Stroud was also off target on 7 of 20 attempts (37%) in the first half, per ESPN Research."
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Stroud hasn't been bad enough that he should be benched or moved on from. He's still a potential franchise quarterback.
But something about Stroud still feels so much like potential. He hasn't taken that next step, the one where he becomes a dominant and prolific passer.
On certain plays, it's so clear how good Stroud can still become. On other plays, it's obvious that Stroud still has a long way to go to get there.
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