HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610) -- Let's just call Saturday's training camp practice a learning experience for Texans rookie quarterback Davis Mills.
He threw at least four interceptions in various red zone drills in day four at the Houston Methodist Training Center.
Texans newcomer Tremon Smith picked him off once, as did Bradley Roby, the team's top cornerback. And in some Stanford-on-Stanford crime, Texans safety Justin Reid intercepted Mills twice (both Reid and Mills played college football at Stanford).
"Look, obviously we don't want interceptions in practice, but it happens," Texans head coach David Culley after practice. "But I thought it was great reps for (Mills) and Jeff (Driskel) both today. You know, that's what you've got to do. You've got to get there in the wars and they got the reps. The thing about those two today, is it was a red zone day and red zone day, everything is tight, everything happens in a hurry and then for a rookie, you know, I mean, things happen quickly and they were getting after it today, especially in our team period.
"I thought they handled themselves well. We got what we expected and we'll go back and watch the video and make the corrections. But it was great work. And that's what training camp is all about."
It wasn't all bad Saturday for Mills, who saw the bulk of first-team reps with presumptive starter Tyrod Taylor away with an excused absence for a family matter.
Mills found fellow rookie Nico Collins for a clean back shoulder throw in the end zone. He also showed mobility rolling out of the pocket to make throws.
Ultimately, it's good to show the rookies how tough it is to play in the NFL, said linebacker Christian Kirksey, the Texans' new signal-caller on defense who also deflected a Mills pass.
"We have all the confidence in him, and you know, it's training camp," Kirksey said. "Everybody is trying to get better. Everybody is learning new things. And I think that he is going to be a great quarterback. You can just tell by his mechanics, how sharp he is, and it's good for us on defense to understand that, you know, we're getting him better and he's getting us better, as well. It's a good chance to see where we are as a unit ask also see where he is.
"That's our job to make it as hard as possible for him and his job is to try to beat us in practice and that's how you keep elevating our team is we're competing. We're getting everybody better. We're going out there and we're practicing hard."
