Houston Texans guard Ed Ingram isn’t interested in hearing the noise around C.J. Stroud.
With criticism following Stroud into the summer after a rocky third season and a divisional round loss to the New England Patriots in which he threw four interceptions, Ingram made it clear where he stands on his quarterback. In a recent interview with KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson before training camp begins later this month, Ingram pushed back hard on the chatter.
"I want people to put some respect on my boy No. 7, C.J.
Stroud," Ingram said. "Think about it: ever since he's been here, we've been to the playoffs every year.
This dude is a problem. I've been talking to him.
He doesn't let the comments get to him. At the end of the day, we're playing a child's game and making grown-man money."
He wasn’t done there.
"At the end of the day, I have so much faith in the kid, bro. He's a frigging baller.
I know this year he's going to lead this team to doing something we've never done before. He's definitely a problem.
I have so much respect for him. Shoutout to C.J.
Stroud.'
Ingram’s support carries some weight, even if he’s a relatively new addition to Houston’s offensive line. He arrived in 2025 in a trade from the Minnesota Vikings, and he’s seen enough to believe Stroud is still the quarterback the Texans can build around.
The bigger picture is hard to ignore. Across Stroud’s three regular seasons, Houston has kept stacking wins and playoff appearances. Since 2023, only four other quarterbacks besides Stroud have reached the postseason every year: Josh Allen, Matthew Stafford, Jalen Hurts, and Jordan Love.
That’s a short list, and it gets even more exclusive when the playoff success is narrowed down. Only Josh Allen has won at least one playoff game in each of those three seasons.
The group also includes a couple of Super Bowl winners, which is the club Stroud is still chasing. This season could be his best chance yet to get there since coming to Houston.
For Stroud, that means the pressure and the opportunity are lined up in the same place. A run to Super Bowl heights this year would quiet plenty of the doubters and give the Texans something they’ve never had before in franchise history.
Inside the building, though, the belief is already there. Ingram’s comments only reinforced what the Texans seem to think about their quarterback: they’ve got the right guy under center.
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