Kevin Durant said it best a decade ago — moms are the real MVPs.
C.J. Stroud has enjoyed a strong start to his NFL career. After a breakout rookie season, he has led the Texans to a second consecutive AFC South title in 2024.
Last year, his success as a rookie translated over to the start of the postseason. Stroud became the youngest quarterback in NFL history to win a playoff game when the Texans beat the Browns during the 2023 AFC wild-card round.
It's no coincidence that his biggest supporter was in attendance for the game was his mother, Kimberly.
Stroud's close relationship with his mom has been well documented since the Ohio State product entered the league in the fall. She was back in action this week during the divisional round, as Kimberly was seen cheering on the Texans QB from the stands.
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The Sporting News has more details on Stroud's mom and their relationship.
Who is C.J. Stroud's mom?
Kimberly Stroud is the mother of C.J. Stroud.
The two have a very tight relationship. Both have been open about the hardships they faced during Stroud's childhood due to the decisions of his father, Coleridge Bernard Stroud III. The quarterback's dad has been arrested twice and is currently incarcerated on a 38-year sentence.
The arrest of the patriarch put the family "into financial ruin." The four children and Stroud's mother were close to being homeless as a result.
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“My mom, she had to play both roles for me for a while — mother and father," Stroud said during the NFL Draft. "I’m super blessed to have a mother like I do.”
With Stroud's father mostly absent during the quarterback's adolescence, it caused Stroud to mature at a young age — something that helped mold Stroud into the man he is today.
"He had a choice when his father went away," Stroud's mother said. "He was going to let that motivate him and be the best or he was going to succumb to it and become a statistic of a kid whose parent did something they shouldn’t.
"I sit and I’m amazed at how resilient he is. C.J. is the most amazing human I have ever met."
MORE: Why is C.J. Stroud's dad in prison?
In November 2023, Kimberly and C.J. launched the C.J. Stroud Foundation, a non-profit organization that helps single mothers, children of incarcerated parents, and criminal justice reform.
"There’s a lot of different passions that [C.J.] has ... [helping] single moms [is one of them] since I was a single mom," Stroud's mother said. "We all started crying [during the event] because a mom, her husband’s in prison ... same situation.
"I’m really grateful that C.J. has taken the step … for a young voice in our generation to shed light on some of the issues that go on in this world."