Following up on this week's Team Notes. ... According to KPRC 2 Houston's Aaron Wilson, C.J. Stroud has made significant progress in his recovery from a concussion and practiced Wednesday on a limited basis, making several throws and appeared to have his usual amount of activity during the portion open to reporters. He's now in Stage 4 out of five stages of the NFL concussion protocol.

"Encouraging to have C.J. back at practice," head coach DeMeco Ryans said. "We're just looking for efficiency, just being able to command the huddle. We're just looking for him to be comfortable in the moment. The main thing is we want to keep the defenders off of him. We don't want him taking another hit. We have to make sure we're protecting him and make sure we're moving forward with efficiency."

The NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and Pro Bowl candidate attended meetings and practice last Friday and teammates expressed confidence and hope Sunday about his potential return.

Stroud remains under the mandatory NFL concussion protocol, but optimism has increased about his potential availability for Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans.

"Good vibes, man, you don't want to have nobody out," wide receiver Nico Collins said. "Glad to see him back in the building. Health is everything, so make sure he get his groove back. Looking forward to next week.

"A lot, QB1 right now. That's the reason that we drafted him. That's the reason he's had so much impact for this team. It's going to be exciting to have my dog back out there, man."

Stroud has missed two games since suffering a concussion against the New York Jets on an unpenalized late hit from New York Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams.

Stroud has been at the Texans' training facility for a daily concussion test under the neurological baseline exam and has interacted with teammates, sources tell Wilson.

Meanwhile, wide receivers Noah Brown (knee contusion), Collins (calf) and Robert Woods (rest) opened the week as limited participants.

I'll continue to watch for more. ... The Texans enter Week 17 outside the playoff picture in the AFC, but winning both of their remaining games would give them a good shot of advancing to the postseason and having their standout rookie quarterback running the offense would boost that bid.