There is no doubt that there is endless hype surrounding Houston Texans star C.J. Stroud with even legend Peyton Manning comparing him to Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes. Now, the Texans have given the second-year quarterback a “five-headed monster” to put it into Stroud's words which could led to an MVP season according to former NFL signal-caller Cam Newton.
Cam Newton believes C.J. Stroud is an MVP candidate with the Texans
The former MVP himself in Newton was on his podcast “4th & 1” where he was asked by his co-host if Stroud can be a candidate for the prestigious award this season. Newton with no hesitation said he can be and cited the supporting cast around him “to make his job extremely easy.”
“Yes, because he has the support to make his job extremely easy,” Stroud said on the topic of Stroud winning the honors. “When you think about MVP runs, especially quarterbacks, I’m always reminded about the Tom Brady MVP, I’m thinking about the Peyton Manning MVP. They had a lot of support and guys who upheld their end of the bargain.”
Along with Stroud, their wide receiver room has Nico Collin, who recorded close to 1,300 yards last season, a second-year star in Tank Dell who impressed in the games played, and they just added veteran dynamic play maker Stefon Diggs in the offseason. They also acquired former Cincinnati Bengals running back Joe Mixon and Cam Akers to go along with a reliable target in Dalton Schultz at tight end.
Supporting cast of the Texans could lead C.J. Stroud to MVP
Last season, Stroud emerged as one of the best young quarterbacks in the game as he threw for 4,108 yards to go along with 23 touchdowns and five interceptions. He was selected with the second overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft by the Texans and there is no doubt they feel confident he is the face of the franchise for a long time.
Related NewsArticle continues below
However, there have been people that say that a sophomore slump is inevitable for Stroud where a regression can happen as other teams will scout him more deeply and take advantage of him. While that is entirely possible, the Texans have built a team around him for the likelihood of that to happen being near zero as even Newton says because of that, Stroud is a “big contender to win MVP.”
“So when I look at CJ Stroud’s supporting cast, when you got Joe Mixon, Cam Akers, and we got Nico Collins, Tank Dell, and Stefon Diggs as well as Dalton Schultz, that’s a recipe where bro just give him a chance,” Newton said. “Chance man, chance man, yeah that’s you. Just give him a chance, yes he’s a big contender to win MVP, but he just has to do his damn job.”
At any rate, the Texans also have big aspirations as last season, they went 10-7 which put them first in the AFC South and even won a playoff game against the Cleveland Browns, but were eliminated in the divisional round by the Baltimore Ravens. They look to open the upcoming season on the road against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Sept. 8 which will be the first test to see if Stroud will be in a slump or a continuous projection upwards.
