Even though Houston’s offense didn’t exactly light up the scoreboard, Texans running back <a href="https://www.on3.com/db/dameon-pierce-28482/">Dameon Pierce</a> was impressed with rookie quarterback <a href="https://www.on3.com/db/cj-stroud-23666/">C.J. Stroud</a>.



Sunday, Stroud made his first <a href="https://www.on3.com/pro/category/nfl/news/">NFL</a> regular season start for the Texans. The game didn’t go quite as planned, with Baltimore handing Houston a 25-9 loss to open the year. But the end result isn’t what stood out to Pierce.



“He did damn good, in my eyes,” Pierce said of Stroud’s play, per <a href="https://twitter.com/AaronWilson_NFL/status/1700983341695250852?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2</a>. “He stayed calm, he stayed poised. We got a quarterback and a few nickels.”



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Texans?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Texans</a> running back Dameon Pierce on C.J. Stroud: 'He did damn good, in my eyes. He stayed calm. He stayed poised. We got a quarterback, and a few nickels" <a href="https://twitter.com/KPRC2?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KPRC2</a>— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/AaronWilson_NFL/status/1700983341695250852?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 10, 2023</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
</div></figure>



Stroud threw 44 passes in his debut, completing 28 for 242 yards. He was sacked five times in the contest and finished without a touchdown pass. He also did not throw any interceptions. 



Maybe that’s not ideal, but it’s pretty solid for the No. 2 overall pick. It’s especially impressive considering the Texans’ struggles in recent years.



Pierce ended Sunday’s contest with 38 yards on 11 carries in the loss. He also caught two passes from Stroud for nine additional yards.



Stroud gets the opportunity to pick up his first win next weekend as Houston hosts Indianapolis. It’s the first AFC South game for the Texans.



<h2 id="h-mutual-respect-between-stroud-pierce">Mutual respect between Stroud, Pierce</h2>



Pierce showed major respect for Stroud following Sunday’s game, despite the lopsided result. The respect is mutual. <a href="https://www.on3.com/pro/news/cj-stroud-describes-dameon-pierce-slept-on-style-play/">During the preseason</a> the rookie quarterback praised the running back for his style of play.



“Every single run he was running hard,” Stroud said, <a href="https://twitter.com/AaronWilson_NFL/status/1696007336375021741?s=20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2</a>. “That’s what you can expect from him. I think he’s a slept-on person who can catch the ball out of the backfield.”



Pierce concluded his rookie season in 2022 with 939 yards on the ground and 165 receiving yards. He accounted for four total touchdowns for the Texans.



A former <a href="https://www.on3.com/teams/florida-gators/">Florida</a> standout, Pierce was selected in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft by Houston. He made a quick impact out of the backfield in his first season with the Texans. With a full year under his belt, there are some bigger expectations for the ball carrier in 2023.



As we saw Sunday, there’s still a lot of growth to be done in the Texans offense. But with Stroud under center and Pierce in the backfield, Houston might have the pieces to get the job done.



Sunday’s game against Indianapolis is scheduled for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff with the game airing on FOX.

cj stroud

5GOATs

Dameon Pierce reacts to C.J. Stroud's debut performance

team image

Pro News

NFL News

NFL Draft News

NASCAR

NBA News

NBA Draft News

Culture

Sports Betting

About

Football

Basketball

Women's Basketball

Softball

Baseball

Alabama

Arizona State

Arizona

Arkansas

Auburn

Baylor

Boston College

California

Removed

Clemson

Colorado

Duke

Florida

Florida State

Georgia

Georgia Tech

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Iowa State

Kansas

Kansas State

Kentucky

Lettermen Row

Lettermen Lounge

Louisville

Maryland

Miami

Michigan State

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi State

Missouri

NC State

Nebraska

North Carolina

Northwestern

Notre Dame

Ohio State

Oklahoma

Oklahoma State

Ole Miss

The Main Board

Oregon

Oregon State

Penn State

Pittsburgh

Purdue

Rutgers

South Carolina

Stanford

Syracuse

Tennessee

Texas A&M

Texas

Texas Tech

UCLA

Utah

Vanderbilt

Virginia

Virginia Tech

Wake Forest

Washington

Washington State

West Virginia

Wisconsin

BamaOnLine

BOL Round Table

Inside Texas

IT Members Only

DawgsHQ

Dawg Walk

Scoop Duck

Recruiting & Sports

AuburnSports

The Corner

WeAreSC

GarryP's Trojan Huddle

The Wolverine

The Fort

The Lions Den

The Wolfpacker

The Wolves’ Den

GatorsOnline

Swamp Talk

Alabama A&M

Alabama State

Albany

Alcorn State

Abilene Christian

Appalachian State

Akron

Army

Austin Peay

Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Arkansas-Little Rock

Arkansas State

Air Force

Ball State

American

Wofford

Winthrop

Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Wisconsin-Green Bay

Wichita State

Western Carolina

Volleyball

Gymnastics

Men's Lacrosse

Women's Lacrosse

Men's Soccer

Women's Soccer

Women's Track

Men's Golf

Women's Golf

Men's Hockey

Women's Hockey

Men's Swimming

Women's Swimming

Wrestling

Men's Tennis

Women's Tennis

Annual $1

Annual Premium

Annual $1 

Monthly

Annual

Unlimited Access to This and All Articles.

Article (On3 Plus Rivals)

Forum (On3 Plus Rivals)

Intro

Join

College scoop, experts, and community - all in one.

Winback

Judge's status takes turn

Charles Bediako case

10 teams that won the portal

Transfer Portal Winners

Way-Too-Early CFB prediction

2026 All-America Team

QB makes transfer committment

Darian Mensah

Full 2026 schedule release

Big Ten Football