The Houston Texans are signing backup quarterback Davis Mills to a one-year extension worth $5 million, sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter. The new contract will keep Mills in Houston through the 2025 season.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans confirmed Mills received an extension but didn't disclose terms.
"Extending Davis is something that he earned. Davis has had a really great training camp. We saw big-time improvement from last year to this year," Ryans said Wednesday. "He handled camp really well, playing some of his best ball in training camp. He went out and proved it in his snaps that he was able to get in the preseason. Everything Davis has got he's earned. He's done a really great job for us this year."
Mills, 25, was a third-round pick out of Stanford in 2021 and started 26 games from 2021-2022. He went 5-20-1 and threw for 5,802 yards with 33 touchdowns and 25 interceptions.
Mills showed promise during his rookie year by completing 66% of his passes for 16 touchdowns and 2,884 yards in 11 starts. The potential earned him the starting role in 2022, but he wasn't able to capitalize on the opportunity, completing 61% of his passes and throwing 17 touchdowns with a league-high 15 interceptions. He was benched in late November for Kyle Allen, but the benching only lasted two games. The Texans finished 3-13-1, landed the No. 2 pick and selected quarterback C.J. Stroud out of Ohio State.
Mills and Stroud were in a quarterback competition at the beginning of the 2023 training camp, but Stroud won the job and had a Pro Bowl rookie season.
This extension shows the Texans are comfortable with Mills as the No. 2 quarterback for this season, which wasn't the case last year. When Stroud missed two games in 2023 with a concussion he suffered against the New York Jets in Week 14, Case Keenum started the next two games against the Tennessee Titans and the Cleveland Browns, not Mills. But this year, Keenum is on injured reserve because of a foot injury he suffered in the first half of the final preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams.
In two preseason games this year, Mills completed 70% of his passes for 191 yards, 1 touchdown and 0 turnovers.