C.J. Stroud powers Houston Texans vs New York Giants as J.J. McCarthy starts

HOUSTON (AP) — The New York Giants know better than to underestimate the Houston Texans entering Sunday’s matchup even though they’ve won just two games this season.

That’s especially true with the way C.J. Stroud is playing.

Stroud was the AFC Offensive Player of the Week after throwing for 312 yards and a season-high three touchdowns in a 34-31 win over the Jaguars in London last week. He ranks second in the NFL with 1,714 yards passing this season and leads the league with 25 completions of at least 20 yards.

“When you have a quarterback like C.J. Stroud, that makes everything possible,” New York defensive lineman Shelby Harris said. “He can make every throw … and so that Houston offense really, I think they are a budding offense and they’re just waiting to explode and it’s on us to really get them on the slow down.”

Stroud and Houston’s offense got a boost last week with the addition of receiver Marvin Harrison after the fourth overall pick in the 2024 draft was traded from Arizona. He had three receptions for 34 yards in limited action in his debut, but coach DeMeco Ryans said he expects him to be more involved in the offense this week.

Stroud will also get one of his favorite playmakers back with Tank Dell set to play in his first game in almost two years after recovering from a gruesome knee injury.

With Harrison and Dell in the mix, the Texans have a stacked receiver group led by star Nico Collins and that includes Jaylin Noel, who had a career-high 107 yards receiving last week.

“All those guys have made plays for us in the wide receiver room,” Ryans said. “I see it as a strength, a true strength of ours and I see us really being able to press the tempo and really put defenses in a bind.”

The Giants will have a new starting quarterback on Sunday after coach John Harbaugh benched Jameis Winston for J.J. McCarthy. It will be his first start for the Giants and their third quarterback this season after the injured Jaxson Dart opened the season as their starter. It comes in the same stadium in which McCarthy won the national title with Michigan in January 2024.

The move comes after the Giants tied the Commanders before losing to the Saints after opening the season 3-1.

“He’s got a heck of a skill set,” Harbaugh said. “He can throw it. He’s picked up the offense really quickly. He’s an athletic guy, obviously and he’s going to play some good football.”

Ryans said the QB switch doesn’t change things for Houston’s defense, which has played better since he took over play-calling duties two weeks ago but that still has work to do.

“Whoever’s at quarterback doesn’t really dictate what we’re going to do defensively,” Ryans said. “It’s about us. We have to play better defensively because it wasn’t good enough in our last outing.”

Need to know

New York Giants (3-2-1) at Houston (2-4).

When/where to watch: Sunday, 1 p.m. EDT, FOX.

Latest odds: Texans by 10 1/2

Against the spread: Giants 4-2; Texans 2-4.

Last week: Giants lost to Saints 34-27; Texans beat Jaguars 34-31.

Last meeting: New York beat Houston 24-16 on Jan. 13, 2022, at MetLife Stadium.

Series record: New York leads 5-1.

Matchup to watch

Houston’s pass rush vs. McCarthy. The Texans aim to get their pass rush going again this week after failing to get a sack against the Jaguars. They have 18 sacks this season, led by defensive end Will Anderson Jr., who leads the NFL with 7 1/2 sacks.

“We’ll try to get J.J. down,” Anderson said. “It’s going to be a good matchup for us. I think more than ever we have to rush together. He’s a young quarterback, so we have to do a really good job of making sure that everybody is owning their box.”

Stats and stuff

— McCarthy threw for 243 yards in just over 11 minutes in relief of Winston in the loss to the Saints, who were up 24 points when he entered.

— The Texans beat the Giants 16-14 in their inaugural season in 2002, but have dropped all five meetings since then.

— Giants receiver Malik Nabers has eclipsed 100 yards receiving in three consecutive games. He had 96 combined in his first three games this season in his return from a torn ACL in his right knee.

— Houston defensive end Danielle Hunter ranks third in the NFL with 117 1/2 sacks since 2015. He had seven tackles, two sacks and forced a fumble in his previous game against the Giants in 2022 with Minnesota.

— Cam Skattebo had zero carries and played just six plays against New Orleans. He is now one of just three running backs on the Giants’ roster after Najee Harris was released this week.

— Both of Houston TE Foster Moreau’s catches last week were for touchdowns. It was first career game with more than one touchdown.

— New York linebacker Arvell Reese, the fifth pick in the draft, ranks fourth among rookies with 47 tackles.

— Collins had 74 yards receiving last week. He has had 13 straight games with at least 55 yards of offense. He’s had at least 75 yards receiving and a TD catch in three of his past four home games.

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AP Sports Writer Stephen Whyno contributed to this story.

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