Last week at the Combine in Indianapolis, we chatted with a few national media folks who cover the NFL. The Texans hired Head Coach DeMeco Ryans in late January of 2023, drafted the Offensive and Defensive Rookies of the year in quarterback C.J. Stroud and defensive end Will Anderson, Jr., and then won 10 games, AFC South, and a playoff game. In today's installment of 'The Experts', the national media members answered the question: "Of who does C.J. Stroud remind you?"
Mike Silver, Bestselling author and columnist for San Francisco Chronicle: "I don't even like to say it, but it took me about two thirds of a season, and I was like, 'He's kind of reminding me of Dan Marino as a rookie.'
Now that's blasphemy, right? Dan Marino is one of the all-time greatest.
Not only was incredible as a rookie, but in his second season he shattered the NFL record for touchdown passes and went to the Super Bowl.
Listen: rookies have had good rookie seasons. They've had impressive rookie seasons. Some of them have taken lumps and then gone on like Peyton Manning and Troy Aikman to become amazing. Stroud got it right away and it looked beautiful and he elevated when it mattered most. So he reminds me of the quarterbacks who've had the greatest rookie seasons ever, including Dan Marino."
Rhett Lewis, NFL Network: "C.J. Stroud reminds me of a dart hitting the bullseye on a dartboard."
Jordan Reid, ESPN NFL Draft Analyst: "Superman.He's just so polished in everything that he does. Everybody talked about the weapons for the Texans last year weren't very good, but I think the sign of a good quarterback is no matter the infrastructure, you're still able to excel. That's what we saw C.J. do. He started to develop really good rapport with Nico Collins, Tank Dell and all these weapons that they do have. So that's the sign that he has a very, very bright future."
Matt Miller, ESPN NFL Draft Analyst: "Oh my goodness, that's a great question. I'll go Iron Man, because he could do it all and he seems invincible right now. Putting the franchise on his back as a rookie was so impressive to me. The resolve he showed every week and even in the in the postseason, he's such a special person. He's so convicted in who he is and has that strong core personality and beliefs. I'm a huge fan."
Chris Rose, NFL Network: "I'll stay in my lane here with NFL. He had a real Joe Burrow feeling to me. Why don't we go there now? Burrow, I think, probably took more chances. His team wasn't nearly as good his rookie year, and he only had half of it before he blew out his knee. But I thought just the way he handled things, composure-wise, the way the ball comes out of his hand, the whole bit. Pretty impressive, man.
His mentality, that's the big thing. His eyes never seem to get too big. He's great. Y'all should feel good."
Andrew Siciliano, NFL Network: "This sounds weird: Can I say Andrew Luck? A guy that immediately came in, won over the entire building and then won over the league, right? Obviously everyone in Houston loves him. Then you saw him play and you're like, 'Okay, I get it.'
But just the respect from everybody around the league is sky high. But I don't know if he's going to have a book club."
