A remarkable rookie season is restarting on Sunday.
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud officially has no injury designation for Week 17’s game and is set to start against the visiting Tennessee Titans.
Stroud has missed the past two games with a concussion, but cleared protocol on Thursday and will return for a pivotal AFC South matchup.
The 8-7 Texans are currently the AFC’s eighth seed in the playoff picture.
They’re hoping Stroud’s return can kindle a postseason run.
Stroud has passed for 3,631 yards in 13 games — just 743 yards from Andrew Luck’s 2012 rookie record of 4,374. He’s also thrown 20 touchdowns to just five interceptions.
He’s been the Offensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner for most of the 2023 campaign, but a pair of top-notch performances over his final two games certainly can only help his cause.
Impressive beyond just rookie numbers, Stroud’s 279.3 yards per game and 8.2 yards per attempt are each third in the NFL and his 98.7 passer rating is fifth.
Stroud’s back and if the Texans win out, they’ll be in the playoffs.
They’ll look to make that happen Sunday when they face the Titans (5-10) at 1 p.m. ET.
