They say never to talk about another man’s money. Well, I’m about to talk about another man’s money.
News broke that Houston Texans starting quarterback CJ Stroud rejected a contract extension offered by the team that would have paid him over $50 million annually. Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes is the league’s highest paid passer with a contract worth an estimated $64 million per year.
Apparently, Stroud must feel that the gap between he and Mahomes is not that steep. However, his on-field performance proved otherwise. In last year’s playoffs, Stroud was downright abysmal. He committed a whopping seven turnovers in two playoff road games at Pittsburgh and at New England. Stroud’s play was so atrocious, you would think he was point-shaving if you didn’t know any better. Thanks to Houston’s incredible defense, the Texans were actually able to win one of those games.
In 2023, Stroud enjoyed a phenomenal rookie season. That year, he totaled 4,108 passing yards to go with 23 touchdown passes against five interceptions with a 63.9 completion percentage for a quarterback rating of 100.8. Since then, Stroud’s progress has dipped. He threw 20 touchdowns against 12 interceptions the following year with 3,727 passing yards. Last year, Stroud missed three games due to a concussion and totaled 19 touchdowns with eight interceptions and 3,041 yards through the air.
It is understandable that a highly competitive athlete like Stroud wants to bet on himself. However, I think he just did the Texans a huge favor by rejecting their very generous offer given his dip in production the past two years. Eschewing an offer worth over $50 million annually in pursuit of an extra 10 or so million to bridge the pay gap between he and Mahomes could turn out to be a fool’s errand.
“If we don’t get it figured out before the season starts, then it’ll be something we address in the offseason,” Texans general manager Nick Caserio said.
Based on Caserio’s statement, that could have been Houston’s final attempt to address Stroud’s contract situation before the season starts next week. The Texans already exercised Stroud’s fifth-year option on his rookie contract, so Stroud is under contract in Houston for at least this season and next. It remains to be seen if Stroud’s gamble will pay off. I certainly have my doubts. Another up-and-down season could ensure Stroud never sees that type of offer again.
