San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
QB Stroud ruled out against Titans
Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud has officially been ruled out with a concussion for Sunday’s game against the Titans, the team announced Saturday.
The front-runner for the NFL’s offensive rookie of the year award miss, Stroud will miss his first game this season.
Meanwhile, the Texans will likely turn to backup Case Keenum to start on Sunday, a source said Saturday, opting to go with the veteran over the thirdyear quarterback, Davis Mills.
Keenum is expected to make his first start in nearly two years.
The biggest mystery this week surrounding Sunday’s game against the Titans was who would be the Texans starter at quarterback?
Mills and Keenum had split reps in practice.
And when asked Friday whether Mills or Keenum would start, Texans
coach DeMeco Ryans said “everyone is prepared.”
“I told everybody on Wednesday everybody needs to prepare as a starter, and that’s how we approach it,” Ryans said Friday. “And that’s kind of how our season has gone, right? We need everybody.”
In other words, either Ryans wasn’t given the Titans any ammunition prior to their matchup, he was still deciding, or both.
There was also some
hope that Stroud could clear protocol. He did not on Saturday and was ruled out.
The decision to start Keenum comes as a surprise as the veteran quarterback hasn’t been active in a game all season. When Stroud has had to come out of the game briefly for injuries, as was the case the past two weeks, Mills has come in.
He was the most Texans’ most recent starter before they drafted Stroud. A good game from Mills could have helped boost his trade value.
But the Texans opted to go with experience, and Keenum has plenty of it over his 11-year career.
Perhaps one of Keenum’s best plays is one of the most famous in NFL playoff history.
Nicknamed the “Minnesota Miracle,” it was January 2018, the NFC Divisional round between the Vikings and Saints.
The Vikings were trailing the Saints 24-23 with 25 seconds left, when Keenum threw a deep pass to wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who caught it, avoided one tackler and raced to the end zone for a 61-yard walk-off touchdown.
Keenum, who signed with the Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2013, has played in 78 games and started in 64 for various teams. He has 78 touchdowns and 48 interceptions.
He is 29-35 in his 64 starts.
But his last start came in January 2022, when he was with Cleveland. He started two games with the Browns that season and won both starts.
Between the two starts, he completed 38 of 57 passes for 375 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
“Everything that we’ve asked these guys to do, they’ve done a great job of running the show,” Ryans said. “We had a really good week of practice. I think guys have been on it mentally, guys are locked in and understand the importance of this game.”
The Texans are in a tight race for one of the final playoff spots. They are currently in eighth place in the AFC standings, but were tied with six other teams, who also had a 7-6 record, entering Saturday’s games.
A loss and they could fall further out of playoff contention. A win and they could rise.
Also ruled out from Sunday’s game was right tackle George Fant. The Texans will start their seventh offensive line configuration this season.