As the Houston Texans approach their win-in, lose-out clash for the playoffs Saturday night against the Indianapolis Colts – the Texans are favored by a point – let’s get down to brass tacks and put sensational quarterback C.J. Stroud’s season in perspective.

With one game (at least) left, Stroud has tossed 21 touchdowns and only five interceptions, good for 3,844 yards – all sensational, ultra efficient figures. He is a lock to be named AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year. More important, he has led the Texans to an improbable winning record and possible playoff berth.

In short, Stroud is putting together one of the singularly successful seasons ever for a rookie quarterback. For a better grasp of Stroud’s accomplishments, oranges to oranges, let’s compare his numbers with the debut season of several Hall of Fame and recent superstar quarterbacks, all high first-round picks in the NFL draft.

Troy Aikman, Dallas Cowboys (No. 1, 1989): The Cowboys went 0-11 with Aikman as starter. He threw 9 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.

Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts (No. 1, 1998): The Colts went 3-13 with Manning as starter. He threw 26 touchdowns and 28 interceptions.

Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions (No. 1, 2009): The Lions went 2-8 with Stafford as starter. He threw 13 touchdowns and 20 interceptions.

Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals (No. 1 2020): The Bengals went 2-7 with Burrow as starter. He threw 13 touchdowns and 5 interceptions.

Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills (No. 7, 2018): The Bills went 5-6 with Allen as starter. He threw 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 1, 2021): The Jaguars went 3-14 with Lawrence as starter. He threw 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions.

It’s true that these quarterbacks joined lowly teams that struggled for wins their previous season – that’s how they earned top draft picks. But Stroud didn’t exactly take the reins of a juggernaut. The Texans were coming off three seasons of sucking big time with 4, 4 and (last year) 3 wins.

Again, with a game left on the schedule, Stroud has 21 touchdowns and only five interceptions. And that’s with Stroud missing two games with a concussion, which the Texans split 1-1.

In Week 9, Stroud set a rookie record against the Buccaneers by passing for 470 yards in a single game. He also became the only rookie ever to throw five touchdowns without an interception.

Had he not missed two games, Stroud may be challenging the all-time record for passing yards by a rookie, 4,373 yards set by Colts quarterback Andrew Luck in 2012. Luck started 16 games and threw 23 touchdowns that season. But he also threw 18 interceptions.

Edge: Stroud … more to come.