It's early June, but one notable player's lack of participation is attracting attention in Houston.
C.J. Stroud has been sitting out of throwing portions of organized team activities due to what was initially believed to be a pectoral issue and has since been reduced to what coach DeMeco Ryans described on Tuesday as "general soreness." Most importantly, Ryans did not express worry about Stroud's outlook as the 2025 season approaches.
"There's no concerns with C.J. It's just general soreness," Ryans said. "We're taking extra precaution with him, but he'll be good to go. No concerns on my end there."
Ryans was intentionally vague Tuesday when answering questions regarding Stroud, avoiding specifics almost entirely when asked if Stroud would be able to throw by minicamp. When pressed further with questions about a possible offseason procedure on Stroud's shoulder, Ryans shut down the queries entirely.
"That's it for C.J., guys. On the questions, that's it," Ryans said. "What I said, that's it for him. It's general soreness, and we're taking extra precaution with him. We're not gonna rush him into anything. He'll be fine. When the moment is for him to be ready to go, he'll be ready to go."
At this stage of the offseason, teams aren't required to disclose injuries on weekly reports like they do during the regular season. Stroud doesn't have a documented history of shoulder issues, either; he's only landed on an injury report once due to a shoulder ailment in his career, which occurred in Week 2 of the 2023 season.
Stroud struggled through stretches of the 2024 season while being forced to operate behind a very inconsistent and unreliable offensive line. The nearly constant harassment had a visible effect on the quarterback, but he never pointed toward any physical ailment as a reason for some of his mistakes.
The Texans still reached the postseason, won a playoff game and pushed the Chiefs deep into the fourth quarter of their Divisional Round game before being eliminated. Stroud played a key part throughout.
It is understandably concerning, though, to see a young star quarterback sitting out of throwing periods in June, a visual that might remind some of the arm fatigue Matthew Stafford dealt with during the same period in 2022 and was forced to endure throughout that season.
Texans fans will hope Ryans is right and Stroud's soreness is nothing more than that.
