Hall of Fame QB Confident Texans' C.J. Stroud Bounces Back

Irrespective of the extent to which the Houston Texans have collectively supported their embattled quarterback C.J. Stroud, the unknown quantities of his turbulent development could still cause sleepless nights.

After all, morphing into a far better game manager and decision maker isn't for every quarterback with a gifted physical skill set. So, there’s little doubt that Stroud is about to navigate some choppy waters.

At the very least, the very highly visible support network that's got right behind Stroud will come in handy, and you can add franchise icon and Hall of Fame passer Warren Moon to that number.

“I think he’ll come back really well,” Moon said, via KPRC 2. “He has a lot of pride. He works very, very hard in the offseason. And the key is to get the pieces that he needs around him to make sure he feels really confident and really secure."

"So he’s got a lot of confidence. You’ve got to beef up that offensive line and then make sure your skill people stay healthy. You’ve got to keep those guys healthy.”

Warren Moon Confident in C.J. Stroud's Resurgence

NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon speaks to the media as Cam Ward is introduced as the Tennessee Titans first-round pick – and overall number one pick – in the NFL Draft at Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park in Nashville, Tenn., Friday, April 25, 2025. Moon, whose No. 1 jersey is retired for the Tennessee Titans, allowed Ward to wear his number. | Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Moon's membership of the quarterback fraternity was always going to lead him to suggest that doing something to improve protection would help Stroud enormously.

While that's a given, it can also be argued that the more bullish and confident version of Stroud during his phenomenal rookie year will have be fully rediscovered. Constantly referring back to what Stroud did in year one is becoming a rather heavy anchor to keep on dragging behind the player and organization.

“No question about it,” Moon declared about Stroud returning to rookie form. “He’s already shown that. He showed it when he first got here. And then he’s shown a lot of flashes over the last couple of years."

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Moon does offer up a pretty workable nuts and bolts solution to get Stroud back to his previous form; however, it certainly means investing plenty of their precious draft capital in the trenches come April.

“They had a strong year, no question about it,” Moon insisted. “Their defense was one of the best, if not the best in the league. They had a lot of problems offensively."

"A lot of their key weapons were injured, especially in the playoffs. And that makes it tough on a young quarterback when he doesn’t have the weapons around him. And the offensive line was kind of hit or miss all season long. So, they’ve got some work to do on the offensive side of things.”

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