Texans flea flicker trick play goes horribly wrong, results in C.J. Stroud fumble vs. Steelers

The Houston Texans have been guided by their tenacious defense throughout the 2025 season. But entering the playoffs, they'll be turning toward C.J. Stroud to provide more offensive juice if they're going to make a run.

However, early in Monday's wild-card matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Texans' offense ran a disastrous play that resulted in a turnover.

A flea-flicker became a Stroud fumble, and Pittsburgh took over after Houston's blunder.

Here's a look at the Texans' rough flea-flicker play that became a turnover.

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Texans flea flicker video

The Texans remained scoreless toward the end of the first quarter in Monday's wild-card game, looking to match a Steelers field goal on the road. On a first-down play, Stroud took the snap and handed the ball off to Woody Marks.

Marks pitched the ball back to Stroud for a flea-flicker, but there was never anything open for the Texans quarterback. The Steelers brought pressure, as Jack Sawyer got to Stroud and knocked the ball free on a sack.

It was a fumble regardless, but the ball came out of Stroud's hands and into Yahya Black's, as the Steelers defender secured the football quickly. The Steelers took over after the disaster of a play for Houston.

C.J. Stroud fumbles

Notably, Stroud's lost fumble against the Steelers was his first of the entire 2025 season. He did fumble the ball twice in the regular season, but neither of those resulted in turnovers.

In his career, including both the regular season and playoffs, Stroud now has nine total fumbles, four of which have been lost.

Here's a look at Stroud's fumbling history, including the postseason:

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