NORCROSS, Ga. — Davis Mills has had a favorable offseason.
The Houston Texans showed him a great deal of faith during the offseason without bringing in another quarterback that could viably compete for the starting job in either free agency or the draft. The team extended star receiver Brandin Cooks and selected John Metchie in Round 2 of the 2022 NFL draft.
While the belief from new coach Lovie Smith in Mills is beneficial, what may elevate the former third-rounder from Stanford is the promotion of Pep Hamilton to offensive coordinator.
“I mean, he’s just a great coach all together,” Mills exclusively told the Texans Wire at the Davis Mills Quarterback Challenge at Greater Atlanta Christian School Saturday. “He’s been in the position and done it at a high level for a long time and been around some great quarterbacks and helped them become great quarterbacks. He played quarterback himself and will still come out and sling the ball around at practice to show us what needs to be done.”
According to Mills, Hamilton has a “warm guy” demeanor, but nevertheless insists on his players making progress. The challenging goes both ways.
Said Mills: “He wants the best out of us and we push him as well to give us his best everyday. We’re all pretty tight in the QB room and we’re excited to see what’s next this year.”
The last time Pep Hamilton was linked this closely with a Stanford quarterback, he helped Andrew Luck make strides in 2014 as the Indianapolis Colts reached the AFC Championship. The former 2012 No. 1 overall pick threw a career-high 40 touchdowns as the Colts collected an AFC South title.
As long as the challenging between Mills, Hamilton, and the rest of the offense is fruitful, Houston fans are hopeful history repeats itself in the AFC South.
