The Texans have started their first offseason program under head coach Lovie Smith with Davis Mills as their QB1.
Smith said on Monday that he’s a believer in Mills, in part because of offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton’s ability to train quarterbacks. Hamilton was the team’s QBs coach last season. The year before that he helped Justin Herbert win offensive rookie of the year as the Chargers’ quarterbacks coach.
In his own Monday press conference, Hamilton said Mills’ consistency in the meeting rooms and in the workouts will be an important aspect of his growth from Year One to Year Two. But the quarterback will also have to make progress in reading defenses to play faster and make better on-field decisions.
“We expect there to be a certain level of progress for the simple fact that you’ve had time on task,” Hamilton said. “I think with any young player not just at the quarterback position, the more you have an understanding of what the opponent is attempting to do to you or how they are strategically trying to attack our offense or defend our offense, it’s going to help us to make faster decisions and that’s what it’s all about. Just making faster decisions and executing at a high level.”
As for specific areas of improvement for Mills, Hamilton pointed to speeding up his drops.
“That’s a big part of staying on schedule in the passing game,” Hamilton said. “We have to continue to work on managing the pocket and keeping our eyes downfield. There’s a lot of times when we get off schedule and we moved off our spot. There is a spot that we typically set up at the top of our drops. Well, if you have to move off your spot, you just want to maintain your throwing posture, keep your eyes downfield and continue your progression and if it means finding your check down, we’ll do just that.”
Mills appeared in 13 games with 11 starts as a rookie, completing 67 percent of his passes for 2,664 yards with 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. But Mills displayed some significant improvement in his last five starts, throwing for 1,258 yards with nine touchdowns and two picks — good for a 102.4 passer rating.