Who Should I Start? Christian Kirk or C.J. Stroud

Wednesday, September 17, 5:27 PM

Houston Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk (hamstring) returned to practice on Wednesday and got in a limited session, per Jonathan M. Alexander of the Houston Chronicle. He is expected to make his team and season debut in Week 3 against his former team, the Jacksonville Jaguars, after he missed the first two weeks of the season. Fellow wideout Braxton Berrios (hamstring) is also expected to make his season debut this weekend. The 28-year-old Kirk is expected to be Houston's starting slot receiver when healthy, but don't be surprised if they ease him back into action against the Jags. In a Texans offense that has struggled to sustain drives through two weeks, we wouldn't recommend Kirk as anything more than a shaky WR5/flex if he's active on Sunday for his debut with the team. His impending return is bad news for both rookie receivers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel.

Sunday, September 14, 6:08 AM

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud is hoping for a bounce-back season after a down year in 2024, but the new season didn't start well in the Texans' 14-9 loss to the Rams in Week 1. Stroud was limited to just 188 passing yards while completing 19-of-27 passes. He was under pressure from the Rams' strong pass rush most of the day and wasn't able to create enough big plays down the field. His interception came on a pass that was snatched out of the hands of his receiver, so it wasn't really on him. However, he didn't make enough big plays or lead any touchdown drives. Even with new offensive coordinator Nick Caley in command, the issues from last season were evident once again in Week 1. Stroud and the Texans will look to get on track against the Buccaneers in the first game of Monday Night Football's doubleheader, but with how rough the Texans' offense looked, it's hard to support Stroud as a QB1. In the RotoBaller rankings, he's QB17, making him a decent QB2 but a long shot to start in standard, single-QB leagues.