C.J. Stroud threw a touchdown pass to Tank Dell in his preseason debut, helping the Houston Texans beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 20-12 on Friday night.
Stroud, who didn’t play in the Hall of Fame game against Chicago last week, completed 2 of 4 passes for 41 yards.
Stroud, the No. 2 pick in the 2023 draft, threw for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns last season, leading the Texans (1-1) to the AFC South title and a win over Cleveland in the wild-card round.
“When you go out there you have limited plays,” Stroud said. “You want to execute at a high level and make sure the ball is going where it’s supposed to and really play fast and use your instincts. That’s how it felt today.”
After a three-and-out, Stroud led the Texans to a touchdown on a three-play series. He threw a pass to Dell, who avoided a couple of missed tackles to score from 34 yards out. Dell had 708 receiving yards before a season-ending leg injury last year and was also injured in a shooting incident during the offseason.
“It’s amazing to see all the stuff he’s been through, to persevere through that and make a big-time play,” Stroud said.
Justin Fields played three series for Pittsburgh (0-1), finishing 5 of 6 for 67 yards. He was sacked twice and fumbled twice.
Pittsburgh moved past midfield twice with Fields, but the drives ended because of a fumbled snap and a sack.
“We were just shooting ourselves in the foot,” Fields said. “We can definitely be better.”
Pittsburgh acquired Fields, the No. 11 pick in 2021, from Chicago for a conditional sixth-round pick in 2025. The Steelers traded Kenny Pickett, their first-round pick in 2022, after signing Russell Wilson to the $1.21 million veteran’s minimum when he was released by Denver in March. Wilson didn’t play on Friday due to a lingering calf injury.
Quarterback Kyle Allen drove Pittsburgh inside the 5-yard line in the second quarter, but the Steelers failed to score after four attempts. Allen missed a wide-open Calvin Austin III in the back corner of the end zone on fourth down.
