Atlanta Falcons' Arthur Smith Heaps Praise on 'Talented' Houston Texans QB C.J. Stroud

The Atlanta Falcons may have their hands full when they face the Houston Texans on Sunday.

The Atlanta Falcons and Houston Texans are on two very different trajectories entering their Week 5 matchup in the NFL.

The Falcons, losers of back-to-back games, are struggling mightily at the quarterback position. The Texans, on the other hand, have won their last two games and have seen positive strides from rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud.

Atlanta head coach Arthur Smith recently spoke on the upcoming game with Houston and what he expects out of its young signal-caller.

“I think they should have a lot of confidence after the last two games," Smith said. "He’s made some plays. He’s a talented player. That’s the thing about C.J. is you saw it coming out of Ohio State."

Oct 1, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) celebrates after a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers at NRG Stadium / Troy Taormina-USA Today Sports

Although Stroud did not win his team a national championship, he did put up numbers during his career with the Buckeyes. So far in Houston, he has thrown for over 1,000 yards and six scores paired with no interceptions.

Some doubted Stroud when the Texans selected him second overall in the 2023 NFL Draft, but Smith has always been a believer.

"He was probably the only, to Georgia’s defense’s credit, C.J. was the only one that looked pretty good against what’s arguably been the best defense in college football the last couple of years," Smith said. "So, it shouldn’t surprise anybody. He’s a good football player. He’s making a lot of good throws. Maybe we can acknowledge that there’s no perfect test coming out.”

The Falcons will look to remedy their quarterback issues this week as the young Desmond Ridder has struggled thus far in 2023. Kickoff between Atlanta and Houston is slated for 1 p.m. Sunday on FOX.