C.J. Stroud

Last week, C.J. Stroud started strong against the Chiefs before they turned up the blitz heat, and the Texans decided to take the air out of the ball and sit on a lead. As the QB29 in fantasy points per game with only two QB1 outings this season, I know that Stroud feels like a player that should never be in a fantasy lineup, but he could revisit QB1 land this week. Among 44 qualifying passers, Stroud ranks 20th in yards per attempt, 19th in passing yards per game, 32nd in highly accurate throw rate, 36th in catchable target rate, and 22nd in hero throw rate. The Arizona pass defense has been abysmal. Stroud isn't playing great football, but he could cook this secondary this week. Since Week 10, Arizona has allowed the most yards per attempt, the most passing touchdowns, the highest success rate per dropback, and had the fourth-lowest pressure rate.

C.J. Stroud completed 15 of 31 passes for 203 yards and a touchdown in the Texans' Week 14 win over the Chiefs. Stroud was pressured 19 times for a 54.3% pressure rate, the 2nd-highest of his career, completing 6 of 16 passes under pressure for 114 yards and a touchdown while taking 3 sacks. He was effective on play action early in the evening, finishing 5 of 7 for 107 yards on such dropbacks, all of which occurred in the first half (Next Gen Stats). The Texans DST/Kicker has the No. 1 schedule in the fantasy postseason: Cardinals, Raiders, and Chargers. However, it is conversely bad for QBs (bottom-3) and WRs (bottom-10). Leave C.J. Stroud on waivers unless you need him just for Week 15 (versus Arizona). In three of the last five games Stroud started and finished, he threw for at least 230 yards.

After lighting the league on fire as a rookie, C.J. Stroud has taken a step back, at least for fantasy purposes. Still, he remains a competent game manager for a defensive juggernaut of a team, providing a decent fantasy floor despite a limited ceiling. In Week 15, Stroud takes on the Cardinals, who have played better defense than most people expected for much of the season. The Cardinals entered Week 14 having allowed the 11th-fewest fantasy points per game to the quarterback position, but Matthew Stafford shredded them for 281 yards and three touchdowns on Sunday. With a dominant receiver in Nico Collins, Stroud may be able to come through for fantasy. On the other hand, the Texans' defense will be a tall order for Jacoby Brissett, so the Texans may be able to lean on their defense and running game, limiting Stroud's ceiling.