'He's Our QB': Texans Davis Mills 'Regressing'? Young Leader Has Commitment from Coach Lovie Smith
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HOUSTON — In the months leading up to the 2022 season, the Houston Texans had a simple plan for second-year quarterback Davis Mills.
Under new head coach Lovie Smith and offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton, the organization had given Mills an entire season to prove that he could be the franchise quarterback for the future.
Following a 34-24 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, Mills' job as Houston's starting quarterback beyond this season could be in jeopardy. But the Texans will not consider making an in-season quarterback change, as Smith announced Monday afternoon.
"The things we’ve talked about is with Davis leading us, we all need to do better," Smith said. "Do you know who our quarterback was that led us in position to take the lead there at the end? Davis Mills. He’s our quarterback."
Mills played his most efficient game of the season against the Chargers. He completed a season-best 74.3 percent of his pass attempts for 246 yards and two touchdowns.
On the two drives that ended in touchdown passes to wide receiver Brandin Cooks and Rex Burkhead, Mills said he was finding ways to continue executing the game plan throughout the game.
But Mills' second-half performance against the Chargers does not negate what can be argued is his noteworthy regression.
"What did I see from him in the pocket? Poised, standing up strong, making the plays," Smith said. "We had our opportunities. It gets lost a little bit when you lose — but that’s how it went."
Entering Houston's Week 5 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Mills has completed 62.0 percent of his passes for 908 yards, with five touchdowns and four interceptions.
Mills' play at the start of the season is a notable decline from the 1,258 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions he recorded during the final five games of the 2021 campaign.
"We were down three-plus scores, and we came back," Smith said. "In order for that to happen, our quarterback had to hit some passes and he did.
"We need to protect better. As far as pushing the ball down the football field, I thought we did do that. But we're not where we need to be in our passing game, just like we aren't in anything else."
You can follow Coty M. Davis on Twitter at @CotyDavis_24
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