(SportsRadio 610) - It was only a matter of time.
The Texans rookie quarterback was going to be faced with an opportunity to put his team on his back and lead a fourth quarter drive with the game on the line.
He got that chance just five weeks into his pro career and nailed it.
In all fairness, Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik did dial up seven runs for Dameon Pierce on the offense's final 11-play, 75 yard-drive. For the first time all season, the Texans got the run game going and it couldn't have come at a more opportune moment.
Stroud delivered the big blow, but not the knockout punch.
The 18-yard strike to tight end Dalton Schultz and go-ahead extra point gave the Texans a 19-18 lead with 1:49 remaining in the game. It was all hugs and high-fives for Stroud and Slowik.
But less than two minutes later, it was face in palm for DeMeco Ryans and his defense.
"It was a special drive, and I wish it turned out different," Stroud said. "But we are going to go back to the drawing board and try to get better."
Despite the defense's inability to stifle Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder on the final drive, in he completed all five pass attempts for 44 yards and a five-yard scramble before giving their kicker a 37-yard field attempt to win the game, we shouldn't lose sight of what went down less than two minutes prior.
For Stroud, while it wasn't the best game of his young rookie campaign, he continued to show growth in all of the right areas.
Stroud finished 20-of-35 for 249 yards with a touchdown and a rating of 88.9, which was his lowest since his team's 25-9 week one loss at Baltimore.
Behind an offensive line that has been ever-changing since the second week of training camp, Stroud has been composed, poised, confident and resilient in his approach from each snap, to each passing week.
Texans starting OL previous 3 weeks:
ATL - Tunsil/Howard/Patterson/Mason/Fant
PIT - Deculus/Jones/Patterson/Mason/Fant
JAX - Jones/Green/Patterson/Mason/Fant
For the third consecutive week with a different starting offensive line, this time featuring the NFL's fourth-highest paid right tackle Tytus Howard at left guard, the Texans once again kept Stroud clean, allowing just two quarterback hits and zero sacks.
"He may be a rookie, but's he's not a rookie," Howard said. "That guy's special, so we follow him. He leads us, and he is going to take us a long way."
Stroud's offensive line has been behind him since day one and he's had their back since.
For four weeks, it appeared that the Texans had found their quarterback of the future. He certainly sounded like the guy.
Despite the 21-19 loss to the Falcons, you saw the guy that can go down and win you a football game.
You also saw a level of dysfunction from a DeMeco Ryans coached defense for the first time and it came at a costly time.
Never mind the inability to stop Ridder and the Falcons from driving the ball with ease for much of the second half, particularly on the game winning drive, but to have 12-men on the field defensively after a timeout is inexcusable.
"They made a couple plays there at the end of the game," Ryans said. "We didn't, so credit to those guys for stepping up and making a play when they had to."
Executing fundamentals is something that Ryans has tried to hammer home, but it failed to stick Sunday at a crucial time.
The Texans entered the Falcons game leading the NFL in missed tackles with 45 through the first four games.
There were plenty more Sunday afternoon.
The Texans allowed the Falcons to convert on just two of their seven third-down opportunities in the first half, but allowed the Falcons to convert five of their seven opportunities in the second half.
Atlanta only faced five third downs on their final three possessions, which consisted of 33 plays and led to 13 points.
The Texans rookie quarterback didn't play his best game. But when the game was on the line, he rose to the occasion and got the job done.
Ryans' defense will be grinding their teeth all week for their next opportunity to do theirs.
"C.J.'s continuing to do a really good job of protecting the ball, protecting the team," Ryans said. "He continued to play well. We just have to continue to play well around him."
