The season opener is a game quarterback C.J. Stroud will probably want to forget.
While he had 274 passing yards and two touchdowns, he also had two fumbles, including one on the final drive that doomed the Houston Texans in their opener against the Buffalo Bills.
Stroud is already focusing on turning the page to Week 2 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
“It's part of the NFL,” Stroud said. “You have to be able to learn from your mistakes and then go onto the next week and try to get a win. We have a tough Bengals team coming in here. They're really good. We have to be on our P’s and Q’s, try to win that game. We'll fix our issues by tonight and tomorrow, turn the page and keep moving forward. One thing that DeMeco [Ryans] said in the locker room
that I agree with is, we're going to keep our chins high and our chests poked out. We did a lot of positive things, do we wish we won it? Yes. But at the end of the day it's a long season.
"You have to give us a little bit of credit there. I think I second his message with that.”
Offensively, it was not an overall bad day for the Texans. They only had four games last season with at least 30 points and that took until October to happen.
The offense is off to a better start than in 2025. The run game certainly looks better with new running back David Montgomery scoring a total of three touchdowns - two on the ground and one in the air. Nico Collins also finished with over 70 recieving yards and a touchdown reception, while Jaylin Noel picked up two first downs.
"C.J. was very much in control the entire game. He took what the defense gave him," Ryans said postgame. "He made great decisions with the football. I'm proud of the way he played today. Thought he showed what he's been showing all camp
It is rather unsettling to see a Texans defense give up 36 points, which is the most points Houston has allowed in a game since November of 2023. They will have a short time to address this before going up against another elite offense in the Cincinnati Bengals, which averaged nearly 28 points per game back in 2024 when Joe Burrow was healthy the entire season.
If the Texans do not improve their performance in the secondary, they will be in serious jeopardy of starting another season 0-2 and making their journey to the playoffs difficult.
Kickoff from Reliant Stadium is scheduled for noon.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: C.J. Stroud turning page to Week 2 against Bengals after loss to Bills
