The Houston Texans may have gotten good news on franchise quarterback C.J. Stroud, but head coach DeMeco Ryans is preparing for Davis Mills to be the No. 1 guy Sunday.
Ryans opened up about why Mills is likely to be the starting quarterback in Houston’s home game against the Jacksonville Jaguars after he struggled against the Denver Broncos in an 18-15 home loss.
Stroud sustained a concussion in the first half of the Texans’ defeat, which dropped them to 3-5 on the season. Mills went 17 for 30 for 137 yards and guided Houston to three field goals on 10 drives.
The Texans are 0-1 against the Jaguars this season after losing 17-10 at Everbank Stadium on Sept. 21. Jacksonville (5-3) sits in the final AFC wild-card spot and is two games up on Houston with nine to play.
The Houston Texans Are Preparing For Davis Mills To Start On Sunday
Stroud’s mom shared on Instagram that he is “OK” after the QB left the game on the final play of the Texans’ first second-quarter drive. But Ryans detailed why Mills, who struggled especially in the second half, is likely to go against Jacksonville.
“We have to prepare as if Davis is playing,” Ryans said. “Having a guy in the concussion protocol, since I’ve been here, there’s not many times that a guy has had a concussion on a Sunday then played the following Sunday. It’s just hard to pass all of the steps that you need to pass.
“We’ll prepare and press forward as if Davis is starting.”
Mills has been largely uninspiring as a starting quarterback, since he has a 5-19-1 record in 26 starts over his five-season NFL career. He has a 62.3 completion percentage and 35-25 touchdown-to-INT rate and has been Stroud’s backup since the Ohio State product entered the league in 2023.
Still, Ryans feels that with a full week of practice knowing he’s likely to be the starter, Mills could make some plays Sunday.
“It helps a lot,” Ryans said of Mills getting first-team reps all week and playing the entire second half against Denver. “It’s always tough for a backup quarterback … [when] you’re thrust into a game in any given situation at a pretty tough situation, you’re asked to go in and operate as the starter.”
DeMeco Ryans Liked What He Saw From Davis Mills On Sunday
The fans started getting restless with Mills in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter when he ran 14 plays and only managed one first down while the Broncos scored 11 points to steal victory.
Yet, after watching the film, Ryans saw some positives from his backup QB’s performance.
“I think Davis made some good plays. He did some good things in the game,” Ryans said. “There were times he made some good throws, some good decisions with the football, made some really nice conversions.
“There were other times when he could slow it down. He was kind of going through some of his progressions a little too fast. There were some opportunities that he would want back.”
Still, Ryans is sure the quarterback will be better from a week of practice.
“I think he’ll be better with a full week of work,” Ryans said.
Ryans thinks Mills’ adjustment as the starter should be sped up by playing against the Jaguars, since they have faced the Liam Coen-coached and Anthony Campanile-led defense.
“Any help I can get, I’ll take it,” Ryans said with a laugh. “It should help. Being familiar with their defense, you know the structures. You know how they’re going to attack us. It should speed up the planning process. … It should help us in our preparation.”
DeMeco Ryans Sends Bold Message on Texans QB Davis Mills Ahead of Jaguars Game