The Houston Texans are still a few hours shy of kickoff for their Week 11 game versus the Tennessee Titans, but the reigning two-time AFC South champions are already dealing with the reality of a problematic situation that's developing with starting quarterback CJ Stroud.
Stroud missed last Sunday's come from behind home win against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he'll be out for today's game versus the Titans as well as he remains in concussion protocol. But unfortunately for the Texans, with their Week 12 game with the Buffalo Bills being played on Thursday night, it's now looking as if the third-year quarterback could be in danger of missing that game as well.
Texans QB C.J. Stroud is out for Sunday’s game against the Titans, and with Houston having a short week ahead of Thursday night’s game against Buffalo, it remains uncertain whether its starting quarterback will be able to clear concussion protocol in time to play the Bills," ESPN's NFL insider Adam Schefter revealed in a late Saturday night tweet.
In order for CJ Stroud to be able to play against the Bills this Thursday night, he would need to practice twice and not exhibit any concussion related symptoms during or after practice. This was a bar that Stroud wasn't able to clear before today's game against the Titans.
When Stroud suffered a concussion in the 2nd half of his rookie season, the eventual Rookie of the Year winner was forced to miss two games, so there's nothing abnormal about the fact that Stroud will have missed back-to-back games this year as his concussion symptoms lingered. However, Houston had the benefit of a full week of practice and preparation in 2023, allowing Stroud to return just soon enough near the end of the 2023 season to propel the Texans into the postseason.
Davis Mills could be in line for a third straight start
With Stroud still on the mend, it would mean that fifth-year quarterback Davis Mills would likely earn his third consecutive start for a Texans team that is fighting to remain in the AFC Playoff picture. Mills, along with Houston's lights out defense, was a surprising catalyst for Houston's remarkable comeback victory against the Jaguars last Sunday, throwing for nearly 300 yards, 2 scores, and adding another touchdown on the ground... the game-winner with under a minute to go.
The Texans seem to have confidence in Mills, despite the fact that his career leading up to this point doesn't inspire much. Mills was 5-19-1 as a starter heading into last week's game, but going into the matchup, DeMeco Ryans and the rest of the Texans were saying all the right things about their backup quarterback. Despite a shaky start, Mills proved everyone in the Texans organization right.
At least on paper, the Titans don't pose much of a threat to Houston this week. When these two teams met back in Week 4, Houston won 26-0, though they led by just one score going into the 4th quarter. Assuming the Texans defense does its job, Houston should be able to cruise relatively smoothly toward a win this week, bringing them to .500 for the first time this year.