The Houston Texans went back to the future in Week 14 when they inserted rookie Davis Mills at quarterback against the Seattle Seahawks.
The last the Texans had seen of Mills was in Week 8 during a 38-22 loss to the Los Angeles Rams at NRG Stadium. All of Houston’s points were generated during the fourth quarter after Los Angeles effectively sealed the game with a 38-0 lead and played their backups early in the final frame.
Nevertheless Week 14 presented a chance for Mills to show he had learned from sitting on the bench the past four weeks as Tyrod Taylor returned to the lineup.
According to receiver Brandin Cooks, Mills had a decent outing in the 33-13 loss to the Seahawks.
“I thought he was great,” said Cooks, who caught eight passes for 101 yards. “He came out, he started fast. His energy was great. He made great decisions. Just got to continue to find ways to build off that and keep heading the right direction.”
Mills did not have a turnover at all as he completed 33 passes on 49 attempts for 331 yards and a touchdown. The numbers reflected what Cooks was seeing on the field: the rookie was being safer with the football.
“I think just being smart with the ball, not forcing things, taking those check downs when the big play is not there,” Cooks said. “That’s vet status right there when you can do it as a young guy and you show that to your team. I think he’s grown tremendously in that aspect.”
Mills seemed to peter out in the second half, as did the Texans’ offense. However, Cooks was counseling his young quarterback to stay the course and not take risks that could cost the team.
Said Cooks: “The biggest thing that I was saying was just continue to trust himself, trust what he sees and don’t press. Don’t take a step backward and press and try to make those big plays when they’re not there. And I think he did that. We’ve still got to find ways outside of him to be able to make him right, even on those check downs or whatever the case may be.”
Houston trailed 19-13 with 8:13 to go in the fourth quarter. The Texans gave up a touchdown and two-point conversion to Seattle that made it a two-score game, 27-13. Ultimately, the Texans couldn’t respond and lost 33-13, falling to 2-11 on the season.