Texans To Simulate Canceled Joint Practices To Help Rookie C.J. Stroud?

Joint practices proved to be helpful for C.J. Stroud. But after cancelling practice plans with the Saints, how will the Houston Texans help their rookie quarterback?

HOUSTON — The Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints mutually agreed to cancel their joint practices Sunday evening. Coach DeMeco Ryans attributed the decision to the number of minor injuries to his players. 

Instead, the Texans will use the next three days as a "normal in-season game week" ahead of their preseason contest against the Saints Sunday night at the Caesars Superdome Stadium.  

Not having joint practices could hinder C.J. Stroud's preparation for the regular season. He will miss out on the chance to play against an opposing team's defense in a non-game setting, which could help him get accustomed to the speed of the NFL.

It's unsure whether Stroud will play in the preseason finale. But Ryans and his coaching staff will construct their practices to match what Stroud would have seen at the Saints' Practice Facility.

"We don’t want to go all-in on simulating all [our] gameplan-type work, but we can give them different looks that they’ll see from the Saints as best as we can to simulate that," Ryans said. "At the end of the day, as long as our guys are prepared – we know what to do, we know how to do it, and we go control what we can control – I think that will be very beneficial for us."

Stroud spent the previous week practicing against the Miami Dolphins. The rookie prospect from Ohio State had a solid outing during the two-day joint practices. And the time spent practicing against the Dolphins was beneficial despite the Texans' 28-3 preseason defeat.

Stroud played five series and finished the game with 60 yards while connecting on seven out of 12 attempts. His best drive came with 5:30 left in the first quarter. Stroud led the Texans on a possession where Houston recorded 61 yards in 11 plays. 

He pushed the ball downfield with five completions. Stroud connected with wide receivers Nico Collins and Noah Brown for a 14-yard gain on back-to-back attempts. The series ended with kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn nailing a 35-yard field goal.

Stroud felt practicing against the Dolphins helped him get into a rhythm while taking a step forward in his development. 

"God has blessed me with this talent and just putting the work in," Stroud said. "I had flashes, and I think I made a lot of good plays. Still made some mistakes, but I think I made more plays than I made mistakes, and I think that's a step from New England and a step from training camp from there where things could have been elsewhere."

The Texans have not named a starting quarterback for the regular season, but Stroud appears to have earned the job. Since OTAs in May, Stroud has left the Houston Methodist Training Center as the better quarterback over the incumbent Davis Mills.

Houston listed Stroud as the starting quarterback for its final preseason game. But the top objective for Stroud is to continue his progression against the Saints — whether through joint practices or a few preseason snaps.  

"For me personally, I just want to keep growing," Stroud said. "I have really good vets on the offensive and defensive side of the ball that help me out a lot. I think for me, just telling myself that just me is okay.

"Accept my nerves, accept my negative plays or accept everything that comes with the game because it's going to just entitle me to get better and better. It's something I'm definitely looking forward to."

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You can follow Coty M. Davis on Twitter at @CotyDavis_24

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