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John Lopez is feeling optimistic about Davis Mills starting on Sunday — are you?
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00:00All right, Davis Mills time, baby.
00:02Yes, it is.
00:02D'Amico Ryan said it flat out, said it straight up.
00:05Even on the follow-up, they wanted to clarify.
00:07People were like, wait, wait, did I hear what I just heard?
00:10Yep.
00:11They don't expect C.J. Stroud to play, and C.J. Stroud will not play.
00:15It will be Davis Mills as the starting quarterback.
00:17I mean, as evidenced by the fact that after D'Amico speaks,
00:20they put Davis Mills up on the podium.
00:22It is full Davis Mills week.
00:26Do you have optimism?
00:27Because it seems like, John Lopez, you have a good amount of optimism here.
00:32That's a good way to put it.
00:33Hear me out.
00:34All right?
00:35It's always great when you have to start a conversation like, hey, all right,
00:38sorry, just stick with me.
00:41And I'm really just kidding with that.
00:43I think there is reason for some optimism.
00:44Now, look, let's preface it by completely acknowledging.
00:49He ain't C.J. Stroud, if you didn't know that already.
00:51Really?
00:51Yeah, if you didn't know.
00:53C.J. Stroud is your franchise quarterback that can do some amazing things.
00:56Now, we know there's been struggles here and there, but you're not going to get
01:01what you expect out of C.J. Stroud.
01:03But there are reasons to believe that it's not even just he's going to get reps
01:09this week, you know?
01:11That helps, and they've talked about it.
01:13He talked about it.
01:14But here, my biggest thing about C.J. Stroud, and you can have some optimism,
01:19this is why you kept him, man.
01:22Who, Davis?
01:23Davis Mills.
01:23This is why, you know, and maybe he could have asked for a trade.
01:26Maybe he could have moved on from him.
01:27Maybe he could have gone Graham Mertz and all that stuff.
01:30But you kept him because he started 25 games in the NFL.
01:34He's played.
01:35He's got over 6,000 yards passing.
01:37He's won some big games.
01:39He's won games against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
01:42Playing the Jaguars, you know, the wide-eyed, you know, backup, getting in,
01:48that's not going to affect him at all.
01:50So, in terms of just like, and I don't mean to sound like, you know,
01:53coach speak or D'Amico or whatever, but like, this is why you kept him
01:58because he's a veteran backup.
02:00You don't want to win six games with Davis Mills,
02:03but you want him to win one or two for you.
02:04Like, this is a big factor in why the Texans should have a little optimism.
02:09I hear the thought process there, and I think pursuant to that
02:12is why I was kind of disappointed in when he stepped in,
02:16admittedly against the difficult Broncos defense.
02:21And with no reps that week.
02:23And with no reps, right?
02:24We've talked about those things, and I don't want to negate them by any means.
02:27But I would have expected that a dude like that can step in
02:31and not sail balls when he has open receivers that are at least reasonably open
02:36that he can get the football to.
02:37And that was the thing that felt weird.
02:38Now, to be fair, I've seen many a starting quarterback have a game
02:42where they're just kind of off, and they're sailing the ball.
02:45The ball is always high.
02:46But if that's what you're selling on the idea of, hey,
02:49there's a dude who is some level of vet that can step in
02:52and do what he needs to, that's one of the things I was hoping.
02:56I know you were talking about some of the thoughts.
02:57I want to go to D'Amico, who was like, why do you have Davis Mills here?
03:02What is it about Davis Mills that makes you confident in him
03:04that other people might not know?
03:06Look, Davis is a super, super smart guy, sharp guy.
03:10Just seeing how he operates in the huddle, and just seeing how he can fix things
03:14when we're not all the way right.
03:17When guys are coming out of the huddle, they have questions.
03:19Davis gets it fixed very quickly, articulates it very well in the huddle.
03:24And now it's about post-snap.
03:25Like post-snap, can we go through, can we make the proper reads,
03:28can we get to the right spot with the football, and can we just execute?
03:33Davis doesn't have to do too much.
03:35We just all have to do our job.
03:37Nobody has to step up, do anything different.
03:39Everybody just has to execute and do their job.
03:41What they're here for is to go out and play good football,
03:45and that's all we're expecting them to do this Sunday.
03:47Can I tell you, John Lopez, I'm not much of a mathematician.
03:50I know those are words, but I think the math isn't quite mathing there
03:53because one of the things that we've talked about with this offense in general
03:57is how much C.J. Stroud has placed upon him.
04:01I disagree with D'Amico, and I don't think that he's lying to us
04:05when he says that Davis Mills is getting guys in the right place,
04:08kind of doing those executive function things.
04:10He ain't C.J. Stroud in doing all the processing
04:13and making all these decisions and checks in the midst of the game.
04:16But then also, and I understand the reason why you say this as a coach,
04:19but also D'Amico Ryan is at the same time saying,
04:21hey, don't nobody else need to do more.
04:24That's not adding up, that Davis Mills is going to come in
04:27and do the same thing that C.J. did.
04:29And even then, with C.J. doing those things,
04:31you were having a hard time breaking even
04:34and getting into the black on your account offensively.
04:37The math isn't mathing for me in that way,
04:39and I hope that you're right and that D'Amico's right,
04:42that this is what Davis brings,
04:45and with the opportunity to actually game plan for him,
04:47that he'll be able to give you all those things,
04:49it's hard for me to get there, dog.
04:51It's hard.
04:52I'm kind of on the other side.
04:54I'm kind of on the other side.
04:56First of all, we don't know if he can do the exact same thing,
04:59see the same things, get into the right plays like C.J. Stroud.
05:03But one thing we do know,
05:05and this is the second point I was going to make
05:08why there might be reason for optimism,
05:10is this offense was not built around Stroud.
05:13Stroud was asked to fit this offense.
05:16This is not going to be like the Eagles losing Jalen Hurts
05:20or the Ravens losing Lamar Jackson.
05:24You know, Davis Mills,
05:27and we can go back to training camp in the preseason,
05:30he was probably picking up from our eyes,
05:33probably picking up the offense better than C.J. Stroud early on.
05:36We talked about it.
05:37Yeah, and do you look at it and you go,
05:45hey, that is our defense.
05:48Well, sure.
05:48Right?
05:49Well, sure.
05:50But again,
05:50how much does that familiarity factor in?
05:52And maybe that's unfair to bring up,
05:54but that is something that absolutely comes to mind here.
05:56I'm not trying to say that Davis Mills has no chance.
05:58Right.
05:59It's just, I got to admit, it is difficult to get there.
06:02But I'm with you there.
06:02Like, there was the reasons to be optimistic that I thought of as well
06:05when you go giving him the full week.
06:08One of the things that is tough, though, is D'Amico,
06:10or sorry, not, just,
06:12how is Davis Mills against the zone?
06:14Sure.
06:14Because I feel like that is something that C.J. Stroud does incredibly well,
06:18is find these guys when they're in zone,
06:21when they sit down and get the ball to them.
06:23How is Davis Mills in that?
06:25But then that also comes back to how good is he at the line of scrimmage?
06:27And that's what really it's going to come down to.
06:29To some degree.
06:29You know, and you heard D'Amico talking about how smart he is.
06:33We've seen little hints.
06:34It's been a while, but of him picking up the offense.
06:37And, oh, by the way, he's kind of run this offense more than C.J. Stroud
06:42in terms of experience because he, you know,
06:44when Tim Kelly was the offensive coordinator, that was a Patriots offense, man.
06:47That was a Patriots offense.
06:48Davis Mills, that was his rookie year.
06:50So he started games.
06:52So I really feel like we don't know.
06:55I mean, he may spit the bit and just be awful.
06:57He may just be inaccurate, as we talked about earlier.
07:01And I don't think that he's going to just be purely inaccurate.
07:04I think that that probably was the circumstances of that game.
07:07It just made me wonder, like, okay, how ready is he to step in
07:10in the way that we had probably thought that he would be.
07:12Yeah, but for me, anyway, the experience, you know,
07:16many years in the league, been there, done that.
07:21Started in the past, even before C.J. Stroud was here.
07:24You know, it's not built around Stroud.
07:27It's built around the quarterback making the calls.
07:28I think he's going to be at least, you know,
07:31adequate doing that from all sides that we've seen.
07:33But then the ultimate reason why, you know, I'm pretty,
07:37I think there's reason for optimism.
07:39The formula to a win doesn't change.
07:41You're not, you know, this is not about Davis Mills being awesome.
07:45It was never really about C.J. Stroud being awesome.
07:48How many times did you hear him say, you know, the style of the offense,
07:50get into the right read, make the right call, the right throw.
07:53So all that, that doesn't change.
07:55You still have that defense.
07:57I mean, you still have probably the best defense in the NFL.
08:01So if he just can process those things, as we've talked about and heard about,
08:06and run the offense and be comfortable and show some of that experience,
08:10I'm not saying they're going to win.
08:11And I don't know how I'm going to land on this game.
08:14But this is not a, like, oh my gosh, they've got no chance.
08:18No, and to be fair, I guess it has sounded like that for me.
08:21I just, the idea that this is going to be better offensively is the question that I have.
08:26Now, maybe it looks different.
08:28And also, it is worth noting, again, that you're not playing in a vacuum.
08:32There's a particular opponent that you're playing against.
08:34And this one is somewhat familiar.
08:36Obviously, you have a different head coach with a different offensive system over there
08:40in Jacksonville and a different defense that's fair, to be fair.
08:44But, I mean, this is, you've seen some of these players before.
08:47And looking at it, there's some metrics that, you know,
08:50when it comes to pass rushing, the Jags are 20th.
08:52When it comes to run stopping, the Jags are 29th.
08:55Like, does that help you?
08:56Are you able to be more effective running the football, which helps?
09:02Just secondly.
09:02It doesn't matter who the quarterback is.
09:03Are you able to protect better than you were for Davis last week,
09:06where, you know, you have Sean Payton making the note in post,
09:11or not even postgame, the day after, talking about how,
09:14well, yeah, you look over there, and once they change to Davis Mills,
09:16we can rush different, right?
09:17How much does that change if you know that they can't rush you in the same way?
09:22Although, Josh Hines-Allen has gotten a lot of pressure,
09:25even if he hasn't had sacks.
09:27Like, you know, Trevon Walker has been better.
09:29Like, they have some guys they can get after,
09:31but if you can find a way to protect up a little better,
09:34if you can run the ball a little bit better,
09:35are you able to find more success for Davis Mills here?
09:39That's also a point where I go, okay, I can see where you're getting some hope.
09:42Yeah, and then there's also the personnel aspect of this.
09:46You know, maybe you're going to have, you know,
09:49D'Amico Ryans was telling the truth,
09:51and he is going to see more of the young guys.
09:53And you heard Pete Prisco on our show just about an hour ago,
09:57and they do need that speed on the field.
10:00You know, that's what's been lacking, you know, the breakaway speed.
10:03Maybe they will throw the ball more to Niko, not just in the first half.
10:07I mean, it also just comes from the game plan,
10:10how they're going to use the personnel,
10:11and then him getting into the right play.
10:14And I'm talking a lot about Davis.
10:16How much of this also falls on,
10:19will your game plan actually be successful for him?
10:21Like, this is going to be a real interesting testament to game plan offense
10:24because there's nothing more that you're game planning for than the quarterback.
10:28Like, how do we see or what variations do we see on what this offense is,
10:33even though our offense or whatever is what they will continue to say?
10:36What variations do we see in play calling for Davis Mills as opposed to that?
10:43But I think it will be telling if there are some things that are some nuanced
10:46and different or if it ends up looking kind of similar.
10:48I think that that call, it will be called the question.
10:50I can tell you what one of them is going to be.
10:51I can tell you for sure what one of the adjustments in the game plan is going to be.
10:55See, they always talked about C.J. Stroud getting rid of the ball quick.
10:57Davis Mills has to get rid of the ball quick.
11:00I think he was trying to when he first got in the game.
11:02Because C.J., he can move around a little bit, but he ain't C.J. Stroud.
11:06No.
11:06So he's going to get some pressure, and he's going to have to get rid of it quick,
11:10which maybe that works against him because the Jaguars know that as well.
11:14Text line from the 8-3-2, optimistic that Mills will get 250-plus yards
11:18and one touchdown.
11:19Not optimistic in the offense being what wins the game.
11:22Well, if he throws for 250 and one touchdown,
11:25how many times has that happened this year?
11:26That's right.
11:28That's what you mean, the offense being what wins.
11:30I mean, to be fair, the defense is always going to win you the game,
11:32but goodness gracious.
11:33They must have got Trevor Lawrence going off on this game.
11:35Well, my question was, is it one touchdown and five field goals?
11:39I don't know.
11:40Well, that gets a little tough.
11:42With what kicker, right?
11:43What kicker.
11:43Right.
11:44And maybe that's ultimately, like, how much you ultimately care about Davis Mills
11:48is also a question because how much does that matter considering how much this team
11:53leans on the field goal kicker, or at least has in very recent history.
11:57And Kaimi's not going to play.
11:59No.
11:59Yeah.
11:59That was the one that I think D'Amico came into that press conference comfortable with
12:04letting people know that CJ wasn't going to play.
12:05That was clearly obvious.
12:06But he let that slip.
12:07That one felt to you like that as well?
12:09Yeah, because at the very end, it was just kind of a walkaway line when he was asked about
12:13Kaimi's status, and he said, with him down.
12:17And that's very much coach speak for him.
12:19He's got a weaker offensive line than CJ's had to this point.
12:30Yeah.
12:30Titus Howard likely not playing makes this tougher.
12:33Does the Blake Fisher on the right side?
12:35Now, of course, it's not his blind side, thankfully.
12:39But Titus Howard being out and Blake Fisher playing at right guard.
12:44I was good with Titus Fisher.
12:46Well, there's disrespect in there somewhere.
12:48You can decide to who and for what reason.
12:51But I think that makes this a little bit more difficult, especially when you talk about
12:54getting the football out and all those things.
12:56That's tougher.
12:57You're stretching the offensive line.
12:58You might not have the benefit of the six offensive linemen.
13:02And if you do, it's six offensive linemen that haven't done it in the same amount of reps
13:07as what you previously had.
13:08This is a tough situation for Davis Mills.
13:11It's not like it's impossible, though.
13:13And I think that's ultimately what you're trying to get across.
13:15I think there's optimism.
13:16That doesn't mean a damn thing in terms of once you get punched in the mouth.
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