Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud may be having the greatest rookie season ever.
Through 12 games, Stroud is leading the NFL with 3,540 passing yards, which puts him on pace to throw for 5,015 yards this season.
That would shatter the record for a rookie quarterback. Andrew Luck, who passed for 4,374 yards in 2012, currently owns that record. Luck set the record in 16 games; Stroud is on pace to break the record in the 15th game of this season.
With 20 touchdowns, Stroud is also on pace to throw 28 touchdown passes this season, which would be the second-most ever by a rookie, trailing only Justin Herbert’s 31 in 2020. And Stroud has thrown an interception on just 1.20 percent of his passes, which would also be the second-best mark ever by a rookie, trailing only Dak Prescott’s 0.87 percent interception rate in 2016. And Stroud’s passer rating of 101.2 would be the third-best for a rookie in NFL history, trailing Prescott’s 104.9 and Robert Griffin III’s 102.4 in 2012.
The Texans have been one of the worst teams in football for years, but this year they’ve suddenly become playoff contenders. The arrival of Stroud is the biggest reason for that — and a reason for a lot of optimism about the future in Houston.