Texans’ C.J. Stroud Linked to Early Trade Speculation

The biggest discussion revolving around the Houston Texans this offseason revolves around what's in store for quarterback C.J. Stroud, who's entering the fourth year of his NFL career after a turbulent prior season, but also has some contract discussions to be had in the coming months as well.

Will the Texans decide to extend their quarterback? Could they just accept his fifth-year option and enter next season without a new deal? Or could they even decide to trade their signal-caller if the right offer comes their way?

That final option of a trade might not be the most likely option, but it could actually be one that's in play. And it's something that other execs around the NFL have speculated about heading into this offseason as well, according to Sports Illustrated insider Albert Breer in his latest post-Super Bowl report.

"If Stroud’s contract negotiations get sticky, or the Texans prefer to punt them to next year—while rewarding Anderson—will there be friction? Could that impact the Texans’ offseason? Might someone swoop in to see if they could pry the wildly talented 24-year-old away? These are questions other teams have certainly asked, as Stroud’s gone through his ups and downs," Breer wrote.

C.J. Stroud Facing Early Trade Buzz?

Perhaps it's too early to toy with a potential Stroud trade this offseason. Being freshly removed from this year's Super Bowl, there's bound to be much more discussions had in the coming weeks to months that will iron out the future of Houston's quarterback position.

But, with the state of quarterback-needy teams around the league, and some potentially willing to offer an interesting trade package to acquire a talent like Stroud still on his rookie contract, it wouldn't be totally unreasonable to believe Nick Caserio wouldn't at least listen to offers.

If traded this offseason, the Texans would take on a dead money hit of $5.8 million, but also save $5.6 million on the books. So financially, there's a route it could be done. Logistically, would the Texans want to punt on Stroud in a trade this offseason rather than riding it out one more year with him at the helm? That's a different conversation.

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) looks to pass Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, during a game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. | Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Regardless, the Texans' quarterback situation sits a bit more interestingly than it did this time last year, and especially so from where things stood two years ago. Now, teams around the league are starting to take notice.

The most likely scenario, on paper, looks to be for the Texans to give Stroud at least one more year commanding this offense in hopes of a bounce-back campaign, combined with some personnel improvements, whether that be his offensive line, the running game behind him, or his receiving talent.

That won't stop other teams around the league from sending in some calls or offers, though. And considering how quickly the NFL landscape can move, and how unpredictable any given offseason can be, maybe the chances of a Stroud trade out of Houston aren't exactly 0% as once thought.

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