The Houston Texans locker room felt heavier than usual after their 15-18 loss to the Denver Broncos. C.J. Stroud’s injury couldn’t have come at a worse time. They’re already sitting at the third spot of the AFC South with a 3-5 record. Now, just when Stroud was finding his rhythm, a week 9 concussion threw everything off. To add to this, talks around Stroud’s injury are also drawing unwanted attention, with a Texan star giving his opinion.

“It was very unfortunate, I think it was a BS call. We talk about protecting quarterbacks, and C.J.’s a big name in this league. He’s a quarterback that a lot of people love and watch. I hope we can get him back whenever we do, and we’re just going to keep fighting for him,” Titans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. said when asked about Stroud’s injury.

DeMeco Ryans didn’t hide his frustration. Neither did Will Anderson Jr. Both men spoke their minds, but that honesty might now cost them.

That single comment could land Anderson in hot water. Everyone’s attention is now on the “BS call”. Publicly calling out the officials rarely ends well in the NFL. The NFL policy manual, distributed annually around the league, makes this clear.

It states, “Please note that public criticism by players or club employees of game officials or officiating is prohibited and is subject to fines and/or suspensions.”

After openly calling out the officials, Anderson Jr. could come under scrutiny. At the moment, even the NCAA isn’t sparing coaches and teams. The ACC hit Clemson with a $10,000 fine and publicly reprimanded coach Dabo Swinney after he spoke out against the officiating in Saturday’s loss to Duke.

And now, it seems like trouble might be on its way as Anderson Jr. joins head coach DeMeco Ryans to address their QB’s injury.

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Will Anderson Jr. join DeMeco Ryans in commenting on the injury

Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans didn’t hold back when talking about Stroud’s concussion from week 9 against the

Broncos. He pointed out that Stroud was sliding and giving himself up when contact was made. Ryans was clearly frustrated that the penalty flag, initially thrown, was overturned.

Ryans deemed the hit by Denver’s cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine “unnecessary roughness.” He noted, “C.J. scrambled, he slid, and the guy, came up and hit him. It’s unnecessary roughness, and he hit the quarterback when he’s sliding and giving himself up. I’ve seen that happen multiple times with our guys and we get the penalty, but for some reason, it just didn’t didn’t happen there.”

Before the hit, Stroud was looking solid, completing 6 of 10 for 79 yards over three drives. The injury happened in the second quarter when Stroud was trying to slide forward at the end of a 6-yard Scramble. That’s when Abrams-Draine made contact, and Stroud slammed his head into the turf.

Losing Stroud was a huge blow for Houston, making victories much harder to come by. Ryan gave credit to backup

Davis Mills for battling in Stroud’s absence but admitted the offense struggled in the 15-18 loss to Denver without their star QB.  But for now, the NFL might come hard on both Anderson Jr. and Ryans.