The Houston Texans have found plenty of success in the NFL playoffs so far, but strangely, it's been in spite of their young star quarterback.
While DeMeco Ryans' defense caused plenty of issues for the Pittsburgh Steelers over Wild Card Weekend, then forced two fumbles in the first half of the divisional round against the New England Patriots, the Texans' offense has largely struggled. Particularly, C.J. Stroud hasn't been able to take care of the ball.
Against the Steelers, Stroud had one interception and five fumbles, two of which were lost. On Sunday, those turnover issues were evident once again — in the first half against the Patriots alone, Stroud threw four interceptions.
Stroud's struggles have been consistent enough to potentially push Ryans to make a change at quarterback, before it's too late for the Texans to save their season. Will he make such a drastic move?
Here's why Houston could make a switch from Stroud to Davis Mills.
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Will Texans bench C.J. Stroud?
For now, there haven't been any indications that Stroud will be benched before the end of Sunday's playoff matchup. In fact, even after four first-half interceptions, Ryans sent Stroud back out to start the third quarter against the Patriots. But things could still quickly change.
Stroud has certainly earned some leeway with the Texans in his young NFL career so far. The former No. 2 overall pick has led the team to the playoffs in all three of his seasons in the league, throwing for a total of 62 touchdowns and 25 interceptions in the regular season. With Stroud, Houston has become an annual AFC playoff threat.
However, Stroud simply hasn't looked like himself since the Texans reached the postseason. Against the Steelers in the Wild Card round, his three turnovers weren't much of an issue; Houston won the game in a 30-6 blowout anyway thanks to its defense.
On Sunday in the AFC Divisional Round, however, Stroud's turnovers were directly leading to his team's struggles. His four first-half interceptions allowed the Patriots to build a two-score lead by halftime.
The @Patriots defense put on a clinic in the first half 😤 pic.twitter.com/bOHukc49Gn
— NFL (@NFL) January 18, 2026
While Davis Mills isn't quite regarded as an elite backup, he could settle into a game better than Stroud at this point. Mills has starting experience for Houston, including three games in the past regular season and 15 games in the 2022 season. Turnovers have historically been an issue for Mills as well — he has 26 career interceptions with 29 starts — but anything might be better for the Texans than Stroud continually giving the ball away.
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C.J. Stroud stats vs. Patriots
While Stroud did throw a touchdown pass to Christian Kirk in Sunday's game, he had a miserable performance otherwise in the first half.
Here's a look at Stroud's numbers against New England so far.
- Completions/Attempts: 13/30
- Passing Yards: 159
- AVG: 5.3
- Passing TDs: 1
- Interceptions: 4
- Rating: 31.8
- Carries: 1
- Rushing Yards: 1
- Rushing TDs: 0
Who is Texans backup QB?
The Texans' backup quarterback is Davis Mills. The 27-year-old is a former starter for the team, being QB1 in Houston back in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Since then, he's remained with the Texans as a backup.
In his former time as the Texans' starter, Mills struggled with interceptions, but in his limited action since then, he's played well. In the 2025 season, he made four extensive appearances for Houston, totaling 915 passing yards, five touchdowns and one interception in total, including three wins in three games as a starter.
Texans QB depth chart
| Rank | Name |
| 1. | C.J. Stroud |
| 2. | Davis Mills |
| 3. | Graham Mertz |
Outside of Stroud, Mills is the de-facto QB2 in Houston. He has starting experience, has been with the franchise for years, and has at least flashed high-end talent at points of his career.
Graham Mertz, a sixth-round rookie out of Florida, holds the third-string role for the Texans. He has yet to appear in a regular-season NFL game. In his collegiate career, Mertz threw for over 9,000 yards; he'd step in as the Texans' emergency quarterback if needed.
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Davis Mills stats 2025
Here's a full look at Mills' numbers in the regular season, including three starts:
- Games: 6
- Starts: 3
- Record: 3-0
- Completions/Attempts: 91/195 (57.2%)
- Passing Yards: 915
- AVG: 5.8
- Passing TDs: 5
- Interceptions: 1
- Rating: 81.6
- Carries: 13
- Rushing Yards: 60
- Rushing TDs: 1