It’s been three years since Houston Texans quarterback CJ Stroud won Offensive Rookie of the Year and made the Pro Bowl. Since then, the 24-year-old has just tried to play catch-up to that performance. Now entering his fourth NFL season, he’s up for a new contract, but the talks haven’t gone anywhere. If nothing else works, the 2027 Pittsburgh Steelers could be a way out for him.

Team insider Chris Carter, on his Locked On Steelers podcast, recently discussed whether Steel City would be interested in seeing Stroud wearing black and gold.

“If everything goes wrong,” Carter said, “if you’re looking at this college football season, you’re like, ‘Oh boy, this isn’t it. Arch Manning, he stinks. Like this is not a year…’ then you say, ‘Okay, what do we think of Drew Allar and Will Howard? Are they not all right? Let’s consider the market for CJ Stroud if, again, the Texans let him go.”

The quarterback class coming to the 2027 Draft can hold a lot of potential first-round quarterbacks. If the Steelers have the chance to get a franchise QB, Carter believes that shuts the door for Stroud. If not, there’s a way. Carter also noted that the Steelers might want to see Will Howard in action in his second year, while rookie Drew Allar develops behind him. If neither of them can move the chains, that opens the market for Stroud.

Carter also put a ceiling on the cost. He wouldn’t give up a first or second-round pick for CJ Stroud, instead going for a third and a pick swap.

“Omar Khan has shown that he’s willing to shake things up, take risks and make shots to try to fix certain situations,” Carter said. “And I think that’s going to be interesting to see how the Steelers move forward.”

But none of this happens if Stroud has a good season. Appearing in just 14 games last season, Stroud racked up 3,000 passing yards, threw 19 touchdowns against 8 picks, and went 9-5 as a starter, taking his team to the playoffs. He ended the Steelers’ playoff run this January, but as Carter points out, that was more because of the Texans’ defense rather than Stroud’s performance.

“While Houston did pick up Stroud’s fifth-year option this spring, the lack of playoff success has given the Texans pause in awarding the quarterback a long-term contract extension,” Jones wrote. “Instead, they’re taking a wait-and-see approach. The Texans need to see more from him this season before committing to him for the long term and making him one of the highest-paid players in the NFL. If Stroud can finally take his team on a deep postseason run, he could quiet all of the doubts about his future.”

Spotrac projects Stroud’s market value at a 3-year, $154.8M deal that gives him an annual average of $51.6 million. If he balls out, Houston will certainly lock him in. As for the Steelers, former stars like James Harrison and Joe Haden do not believe the Steelers would want to pay Stroud that big of a contract to start for Steel City. And for Stroud, he isn’t worrying about any of this.

“I let my agent handle it. If it’s time to do it, then it is,” Stroud told reporters back in May. “My job is football, so that’s what I focus on – just getting better. I think I’ve held my bargain up on that edge. Whatever happens, happens. I am excited to be a Texan this year and go from there.”