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HOUSTON (AP) C.J. Strouds rookie campaign has been so remarkable that hes turned around the Houston Texans and restored hope among fans in a city that had all but given up on this franchise after three dreadful and often embarra sing seasons.The polished quarterback and first-year coach DeMeco Ryans have the Texans winners of just three games last season a victory away from reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2019.Its the kind of moment Stroud couldnt even fathom when his father went to prison when he was a teenager.I was hopele s for a little while, he told The A sociated Pre s in an interview earlier this season. I didnt know if I was gonna make it out or be anything.ADVERTISEMENT What pulled him Marco Gonzales Jersey out of that negative space was watching games and hearing his favorite athletes share tales of their struggles and how they made it to the other side.And I was like, man I can do this, too, Stroud said.Hes been in the spotlight for a few years now after starring at Ohio State before being drafted second by the Texans last year and blo soming into one of the leagues top quarterbacks quicker than most anyone predicted. But he still considers himself a private person and its sometimes difficult for him to open up about the struggles hes faced since his father Coleridge Bernard Stroud III went to prison in 2016. He received a 38-years-to-life sentence after pleading guilty to charges of carjacking, kidnapping and robbery in a drug-related incident and remains incarcerated at Californias Folsom State Prison.After Strouds biggest game of the season in November, when , when asked a question about the record, he first spoke about his father and the need for prison reform.It wasnt easy for the 22-year-old to show that side of himself, but he did it for all those kids going through situations like his who might have also lost hope.I dont like people in my busine s, but same time being vulnerable as a man is just as honorable as being private, he said. I was raised a little bit to not let people see you down, but to also have an idea of being vulnerable, and I kind of learned that in the later years of my life.And for me, I just wanted to be vulnerable in that aspect, he continued. Just to let people know not only am I product of it, but you can become something more than that for those kids that are going through the same things.Few teams Kyle Seager Jersey go from league laughingstock to playoff contender in just one season and the proce s is much more difficult with a rookie quarterback. But most everyone a sociated with the Texans agrees that this rookie quarterback is so special that he immediately raised the bar within the franchise.You can tell he cares a great deal about winning, offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik said. He cares Yusei Kikuchi Jersey a lot about the organization being succe sful. He cares a lot about his fellow teammates being succe sful. How much energy he devotes to that I think just shows through the course of conversation.There are not many conversations that anyone on this team has had with C.J. where you would say hes not present, Slowik said. Hes a very present person and hes very emotionally and mentally invested on a personal level and what were trying to do football-wise."Though Stroud hasnt often spoken publicly about his fathers situation, hes been helping with his legal fees and his appeals proce s since he started making money from football.Stroud was too young to understand many details of the situation when his father went to prison. Now, he believes he had ineffective legal counsel at the time and is trying to get him released sooner than his earliest parole date of 2040. The elder Stroud received a longer sentence for this crime because he had a conviction 20 years earlier. I learned about what happened and things that he pleaded to that he really didnt do, Stroud said. He was kind of like bamboozled into making a decision (when) he wasnt really in his right mind. And a lot of times people who have substance abuse i sues and things like that, they dont need jail, they need rehab and help.Stroud has joined with billionaire Michael Rubin's REFORM Alliance to help promote prison reform and during the NFL's My Cause My Cleats game late last year.While Strouds thoughts are often with his father, when they talk, his father urges him to focus on football and his life outside instead of what hes dealing with in prison.He knows that I have a lot on my plate, and he respects that, and he just likes to be filled in on whats going on, Edwin Diaz Jersey Stroud said. I talk to him about stuff I probably dont talk to a lot of people about just because hes my dad. He knows me for real.When Stroud was at Ohio State, most of his games were on national network television so his dad or Pops, as he calls him got to watch him play often.Most people, the NFL schedule-makers among them, figured the Texans were in for another bad season so they werent given any nationally televised games this season. For the elder Stroud, that meant he couldnt watch his namesake play live. He could only catch highlights later or check stats to see his son's progre s in a season where hes thrown for 3,844 yards with 21 touchdowns and just five interceptions despite mi sing two games with a concu sion.But that could change this week after Houstons game at Indianapolis was moved from the early slot on Sunday to a nationally televised prime time game .For now, thats the only way his father will get to watch Stroud play. But the quarterback has gotten positive reports from lawyers working on his fathers case who believe theyll eventually get his sentence reduced. Theyre really hopeful, he said. Its been (everything) from getting out really soon or getting the sentence cut more than three quarters. So, it should be pretty soon.He refuses to accept that hell never be able to gaze into the stands and see his dad sitting there cheering him on.I dont really think like that, he said. I think my dad can come watch me play soon. Thats how Im thinking, positively. And I know by Austin Nola Jersey the glory of God and his grace well be seeing each other soon. And thats the hope. Thats what Im praying for."___AP NFL: