Texans upset with no flag for tackle that caused C.J. Stroud’s concussion: ‘I think it was a BS call’

HOUSTON – Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud took off on a scramble Sunday, sliding as he’s been taught to do to protect himself.

That didn’t work out as planned, though, during an 18-15 loss at NRG Stadium.

Denver Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine launched himself at Stroud with a hard left shoulder tackle that collided with the quarterback’s chest plate and sent the back of his helmet crashing into the artificial turf, bouncing off the ground.

Stroud stayed down for several minutes while being attended to by trainers before walking gingerly off the field with trainers, extending a thumb’s up to the crowd at NRG Stadium. He left the game and didn’t return as he was diagnosed with a concussion.

In the aftermath of the hit, which initially drew a flag for unnecessary roughness, the penalty was removed with officials accurately determining that Abrams-Draine didn’t make contact with Stroud’s head or neck. However, the judgment call that it was a legal tackle didn’t sit well with the Texans.

Their position: Stroud was giving himself up with the slide and should have been protected under the NFL rulebook, as other star quarterbacks have been.

“Man, it was very unfortunate, I think it was a BS call,” said Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr., one of Stroud’s closest friends. “We talk about protecting quarterbacks. C.J. is a big name in this league. He’s a quarterback that a lot of people love and watch. We love him in here.

“Man, I hope we can get him back. Obviously, you see the play. Still got hit in the head, to me. It’s whatever, man. It’s the league.”

The review of the hit ultimately reached a conclusion that the penalty wasn’t warranted.

The Texans disagree vehemently.

“As I see it, it’s unnecessary roughness when you hit the quarterback when he’s sliding and giving himself up,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “If I’m incorrect on the rule… I’ve seen that happen multiple times with our guys and we get the penalty. But, for some reason, it just didn’t happen there.

“So, we’ll look at the film and see what actually happened there. At the end of the day, we lost our starting quarterback because of the play and any time you lose your starting quarterback it’s always tough.”

From the standpoint of Texans veteran linebacker and team captain Azeez Al-Shaair, there’s a clear inconsistency in how the game was officiated by referee Ronald Torbert.

A year ago, Al-Shaair was ejected for fighting after the hit, suspended for three games and fined when he caused a concussion with his high forearm tackle against a late-sliding Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Al-Shaair drew harsh criticism in a disciplinary letter from NFL executive Jon Runyan, who had a long history of illegal hits when he was a player for the Philadelphia Eagles. Al-Shaair even contemplated leaving the game. He was derided widely on social media and characterized as a dirty player, also receiving racist and anti-Islamic comments stemming from his Muslim faith and support of Palestine.

“Obviously, last year, that was me,” said Al-Shaair, who spoke with the Broncos corner. “So, the first thing I’m thinking is like, ‘Damn.’ It’s a tough situation. I was like, ‘Hey, I was literally just there. You’re probably gonna get crucified, you might get kicked out of the game. But just know who you are and know that all that stuff that people are gonna say about you, if they do, it is what it is. That’s not reflection of who you are. Just let that play clear your mind.”

To not have the penalty enforced, though, and completely disallowed triggered frustration from Al-Shaair.

“To see that there was, not only did he not get ejected, there was not even a flag,” Al-Shaair said. “I think that frustrated more than anything. Just knowing everything I just dealt with a year ago to where the NFL comes out and calls me this headhunter-type player, and you won’t even have a guy like that get a flag. I was blown away. It really shocked me.”

The Texans replaced Stroud with backup quarterback Davis Mills, who struggled with his accuracy against the Broncos’ formidable defense.

He completed 17 of 30 throws for 137 yards with no scores and no interceptions. After halftime, Mills went 7 for 16 for 53 yards as the offense mustered no real production.

Stroud completed 6 of 10 passes for 79 yards before getting hurt.

“It’s easy to stand up here and make excuses,” Ryans said. “[Injuries] happen all across the league all the time. You don’t make excuses about who’s in the game or who’s not in the game. We still had an opportunity there to close the game out and win it.

“Every offense is going to miss their starting quarterback. We want our starting quarterback in the game at any given time; that’s why he’s a starting quarterback. But it’s no excuses. A lot of teams have won games with backup quarterbacks before, and we had our opportunity. We had our chance.”

The Texans had only 33 yards of offense in the fourth quarter as the offense sputtered, finishing 3 of 17 on third downs and 0 for 3 in the red zone.

The Texans dropped to 3-5 overall. They face the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday at home and could be forced to play without Stroud and start Mills in his place. Stroud will be under the mandatory NFL concussion protocol and can’t practice or play again until he’s medically cleared.

After the game, his foundation posted photos of Stroud with his mother, Kimberly Stroud, along with a caption: ‘C.J. is OK. Thank you for your prayers."

Stroud suffered a concussion two years ago against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on a tackle by defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. In that case, too, the back of his head hit the turf. The concussion lingered and the Texans had to play without him.

Now, that’s happening again.

“It kinda fired a lot of guys up,” tight end Dalton Schultz said. “Obviously, you never want to see hour quarterback go down. Anytime you have a big-name guy like that go down, especially the quarterback, it sucks, but, dude, you gotta find a way to bounce back.

“It’s your time to step up. We We need the next guy to come in and just be consistent. Just execute.

NOTES: Texans right tackle Tytus Howard suffered a concussion. He was ruled out for the remainder of the game along with linebacker Christian Harris with a shin injury.

Blake Fisher replaced Howard at right tackle.

Right guard Ed Ingram was evaluated for a knee injury and briefly replaced by Juice Scruggs before returning to action.

Reserve defensive end Darrell Taylor was ruled out with an ankle injury.

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com