With the Deshaun Watson situation still up in the air, the Houston Texans drafted former Stanford quarterback Davis Mills with its first (third-round) pick in April.
And today at training camp? The kid who the Texans coaching staff believes is a “prototype NFL quarterback” is an NFL.first-teamer.
Watson is watching. Tyrod Taylor has a scheduled personal day. So this Saturday session is about big-time reps for both veteran journeyman Jeff Driskel and Mills.
“We really love what he’s all about. We love all the intangibles he has,” Texans head coach David Culley said of Mills. “He can make all the throws and we feel good and feel fortunate that we’re able to get him when we got him.”
As a rookie, Mills understands he’s not going to necessarily fill the shoes of Watson or become Houston’s “face of the franchise” immediately. For now, he simply wants to work on improving his skills on the field and learn as much as he can from Culley and the other veteran quarterbacks in the locker room.
“They’ve been great, and I love it,” Mills said about his new team. “They definitely have a lot to teach me, and I have a lot to learn.”
Texans passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton has had his eye on Mills since he was in high school. Hamilton has worked at developing quarterbacks like Andrew Luck and Justin Herbert, and with Mills, he sees a young man with tremendous promise.
“I do think that the things that he was introduced to at Stanford and the skillset that he developed is going to help him to have a better chance to play winning football in the National Football League,” Hamilton said.
Mills might not be the second coming of Deshaun Watson, but he is sure going to be the best Davis Mills he can be. That process accelerates today … and we will have full coverage from inside training camp coming up on TexasDaily.com.
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