C.J. Stroud

The knock on Stroud entering last year’s draft was his supposedly sub-par processing ability. It took about two games to kill that narrative. The No. 2 pick in the draft went 191 attempts before throwing his first interception -- in Week 6 -- to set a rookie record and two weeks later sowed up Rookie of the Years honors when he passed for a rookie-record 470 yards and five touchdowns. Stroud’s 4,108 yards -- in 15 games, mind you -- ranked third all-time for a rookie, his 23:5 TD:INT was the second-best ratio by a rookie since the merger and his 8.2 YPA was the highest of any rookie since 1970 with at least 300 attempts. The strong-armed Stroud continually pushed the ball downfield with a 9.0-yard average target depth, second in the NFL, and excelled throwing deep, completing 58.8 percent of his attempts of at least 20 yards (2nd) with eight touchdowns and no interceptions. His accuracy (22nd in on-target percentage) should improve in his second year, and the addition of Stefon Diggs gives the Texans one of the league’s better WR trios with Nico Collins and Tank Dell, whom Stroud turned into fantasy weapons last season. TE Dalton Schultz returns to give Stroud a fourth playmaking target and the trade for RB Joe Mixon will benefit the running game. At 6-3, 218, Stroud moves well in the pocket, but using his legs a bit more would make him less reliant on his arm for fantasy value (QB9 last year). Read Past Outlooks