CJ Stroud says he wasn’t trying to be his ‘little brother’ Caleb Williams in viral clip

CJ Stroud insists he wasn’t trying to embarrass Caleb Williams during their postgame interaction following the Texans’ win on Sunday.

In a clip shared by NFL Films on Tuesday, Stroud is heard giving Williams words of encouragement and advice. He then appears to grab Williams to pick up the conversation as the Bears rookie quarterback was about to leave the field.

Stroud explained that what he did was similar to what the veteran players did for him last year.

“I wasn’t trying to treat him like a little brother or anything,” Stroud told reporters. “He knows that, too. I have a lot of respect for him. Last year, a lot of guys came up to me after games and that meant a lot to me that those guys would even think to give me advice.”

“So, I’m just trying to give back what the game is giving me. I wish him the best, man. I want him to do amazing in this league. I think he will.”

In the video, Stroud explicitly told Williams to “stop taking those hits” and to “learn from those mistakes.” He ended the conversation by assuring Williams that he would be a good quarterback in the league.

“Everything you got, bro, you got it already,” Stroud told Williams. “You’re going to be a great player in this league.”

Williams, who was sacked seven times and threw two interceptions in Sunday’s game, was not as engaging and limited his responses to Stroud to just a few words.

“I appreciate it,” Williams said at the end of his conversation with Stroud.

There was some debate about whether Williams was upset by the way Stroud, who won Offensive Rookie of the Year last season, spoke to him. Nick Wright of “First Things First” believes that was the case.

“I think Caleb handled it as well as he could, given the fact that he had to be absolutely furious,” Wright said. “They’re contemporaries. It’s not a big brother, little brother situation. Do you know how old Caleb Williams is? He’s (22) and he’ll be (23 in November). Do you know how old CJ Stroud is? He’s (22) and he’ll be (23 in October).

“You know how Caleb looks at CJ, I imagine? Remember tonight (in 2022), when they were colleagues on the dais at the Heisman Trophy ceremony, and Caleb won the award.”

Williams didn’t say much about the interaction he had with Stroud after Sunday’s game.

“We shook hands at the end of the match,” Williams told reporters Sunday after the game. “That was it.”

Stroud didn’t think Williams’ response to their interaction was negative.

“I don’t think he was trying to be mean to me. He was just upset that they lost,” Stroud said. “I totally understand that. I have a lot of respect for that guy.”

Stroud’s moment with Williams wasn’t the only sound bite that went viral from Sunday’s game. He told Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson to “stop telling his secrets on Richard Sherman’s podcast.”

“That palm looks like this,” Stroud said when Johnson asked him to clarify the situation. “You’re not going to catch me! You’re not going to catch me!”

In an appearance on Sherman’s podcast, Johnson explained that he got an interception in a game against the Minnesota Vikings last season by using the palming technique to fool quarterback Joshua Dobbs. Johnson appeared to smile when Stroud reminded him of this.

Even though the Texans scored just 19 points on Sunday, Stroud didn’t seem to be fooled by the Bears’ defense. He completed 23 of 36 passes for 260 yards in the win.

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