Texans Roundup: Looking at the QB depth chart for 2022

The Houston Texans have four quarterbacks currently on the roster for ’22.

This offseason when training camp rolls around the Houston Texans have a variety of quarterbacks on their roster, with four players currently under contract at the position.

Houston’s depth chart looks like this: Davis Mills, Kyle Allen, Jeff Driskel and Kevin Hogan. Mills will be the starter for the franchise after his success built at the end of last season, and Houston made the big trade to give the Cleveland Browns Deshaun Watson for a huge return of draft picks for not only this past draft, but two more drafts in 2023 and 2024.

Mills has every opportunity to make improvements from year one to year two, and when all his receivers are healthy — which include the top three on the roster (Brandin Cooks, Nico Collins and rookie John Metchie III — they will be a dangerous trio that many in the NFL will have to take notice of, whether they want to or not.

Other than Mills, let’s look at the other three quarterbacks, including Allen, who in four seasons has played for the Carolina Panthers (2018-19) and the Washington Commanders (2020-21). In those seasons, Allen is 7-10 as a starter with 24 career touchdowns and 17 career interceptions.

This past season with the now-Commanders, Allen had zero starts as he was 12-of-19 for 120 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions in what was his fourth NFL season.  For his career, Allen has completed 63.1 percent of his passes.

Texans: Two more QBs also have experience as a starter in the NFL

Driskel has played for three teams in his career, starting with one season in Cincinnati with the Bengals, followed by two seasons as a member of the Detroit Lions and last year with the Texans.

Driskel was active for one game last season with Houston, and he didn’t have a pass attempt. In his four seasons in the NFL, Driskel is 1-8 as a starter with 2,130 yards passing that includes 13 touchdown passes and eight interceptions. In his 2018 rookie season with the Bengals, Driskel passed for 1,008 yards with six touchdown passes and two interceptions.

As for Hogan, he joined the Texans this offseason, but before that he’s made stops with the Browns and Tennessee Titans in three NFL seasons from 2016-17 and 2021 with the Browns. Hogan has also signed contracts with the Kansas City Chiefs, Commanders, Denver Broncos and the Bengals but never was on their active game-day roster.

For his career, Hogan has four touchdown passes and seven interceptions with one career start in Cleveland as his career starting record is 0-1.

Even though none of the quarterbacks behind Mills on the depth chart have outstanding career numbers, they have a wealth of knowledge to share with Mills this upcoming season, and they’ll at least bring competition to training camp in ’22.

Allen could be a very nice player to have as a backup to Mills due to all of his previous starting experience, and with Driskel has some experience as a starter too. Hogan has worked with offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton in the past, and all of the knowledge that the three quarterbacks not named Mills have could really help the second-year quarterback in his progression for the ’22 season and beyond.

The most important thing for the Texans with their quarterback depth chart is they bring competition for Mills, but they also realize they need to help him become a better quarterback because that’s what is best for the Texans in this rebuild of the roster and franchise.