The Houston Texans have one of the best passing quarterbacks in the NFL and a leading Defensive Player of the Year candidate.So how is a team led by the passionate DeMeco Ryans — also one of the best young coaches in the league — walking into Wembley Stadium on Sunday with a maddening 1-4 record?C.J. Stroud could command a contract extension near $240 milliongetty“We feel we have a good football team,” Texans general manager Nick Caserio exclusively told talkSPORT, after practice at Harrow School in northwest London. “We have a poor record, but that’s the NFL. So the margins are very small — the number of one-score games that take place in the league, I mean, it happens just about every week. So our ability to finish games and kind of execute in the fourth quarter ultimately is going to determine wins and losses. “We’re making some progress — played well last week. Hopefully we continue to play good football this week against a good Jacksonville team. We like where we are relative to the team that we’ve put together. We just need to play better football. That’s the bottom line.”The Texans turned an 0-3 start into a 12-5 record last season, then blasted the Steelers 30-6 in Pittsburgh during an AFC Wild Card playoff game that almost forced Aaron Rodgers to retire and helped send a burnt-out Mike Tomlin onto NBC’s Sunday Night Football TV set.But falling to 1-5 vs Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars — who used Nick Sirianni‘s help last weekend at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to barely beat the Philadelphia Eagles — would be the latest low point for a Texans franchise that is 175-218-1 all-time and still searching for its first AFC Championship game appearance. C.J. Stroud’s four-interception nightmare last January in a season-ending AFC Divisional Round road defeat to Caserio’s former team, the New England Patriots, set up everything that the Texans have faced to start the 2026 campaign.Stroud ranks fourth in the NFL in passing yards (1,402) and has yet to throw a pick.On Friday, the No. 2 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft started practice by getting dressed next to former Ohio State teammate Marvin Harrison Jr., then took extra time to sign autographs for and take photos with enthusiastic Harrow School students. Through five games and four frustrating losses, Stroud hasn’t been the problem for a 2026 Texans team that was supposed to be an AFC Championship contender. Houston GM Nick Caserio told talkSPORT how the Texans are handling a frustrating 1-4 startgettyThe Texans drafted Stroud and Will Anderson back to back in 2023gettyView Tweet: https://x.com/talkSPORT?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw“Consistency, growth, maturity. You’ve seen that really going back to the offseason,” Caserio said. “So it’s a credit to him, the credit to the work that he’s put in. And he’s played really good football for us.”Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr., who was drafted one spot behind Stroud in 2023, received a $150m contract extension in April and has answered that historic deal by leading the NFL with 7.5 sacks.Stroud is playing for his professional and financial future in 2026.He’s better than Baker Mayfield, who signed a three-year, $165m extension with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.But while Stroud could command $60m-plus annually, turning 1-4 into 2-4 at Wembley is all that currently matters for the Texans.“Those things will kind of take care of themselves,” said Caserio, discussing Stroud’s leadership and potential long-term future with the Texans. “We had discussions during the offseason, so I’m sure you’re aware. And they were really good discussions; kind of didn’t come to an agreement. But I think he’s proven that he’s a really good player. He’s a good ambassador for the organization. So he’s a player that we want to have around here for as long as we can.”Join talkSPORT’s dedicated US Sports YouTube channel The S* Word every Tuesday and Thursday for our brand new NFL shows.On Tuesdays, Will Gavin and US senior reporter Brian T. Smith will debate the biggest talking points from the NFL weekend, while on Thursdays Efe Obada joins the crew to talk to players past and present and break down what to look for across the league.