(SportsRadio 610) -- Texans head coach David Culley made it clear that whenever Tyrod Taylor is able to play, he will be the starting quarterback.
For now, the Texans are led by rookie third-round pick Davis Mills, who bounced back Sunday against the New England Patriots after a rough performance the previous week against the Buffalo Bills.
Mills told reporters Wednesday he is focused on how he manages pre-snap reads, making sure he's getting the offense into the right play, handling his mike linebacker points, then going through his reads and progressions.
"There’s a couple that kind of stick in your head, either the good ones or the bad ones that you kind of want to go and fix," Mills said. "The first chance you have after a game is usually the Wednesday practice. Initially, that’s it, but there’s usually a couple that stick with you."
In the first quarter against Buffalo, when Mills threw four interceptions in a 40-0 blowout by the Bills, Mills forced a throw into double coverage intended for Anthony Miller and it was picked off by Bills linebacker Tremaine Edmunds.
Mills did it again in the fourth quarter on a deep ball also intended for Miller, but was badly underthrown and intercepted by Jaquan Johnson.
The focus after that game, especially with Taylor out for at least another couple of weeks, was for Mills to protect the football and the offense as a whole to do a better job of staying ahead of the chains.
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Mills said what he liked about the game plan against the Patriots was how they mixed up their looks with a lot of shifts and motions.
"We really had the defense guessing, and I felt like we were just moving the ball very efficiently," said Mills, who was 21-for-29 with 312 passing yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers Sunday.
The Patriots' defense is not as talented as the Bills', but the Texans improved drastically on third and fourth downs against New England; 6-of-14 and 3-of-3, respectively. At Buffalo, the Texans were 1-for-9 on third down and 1-for-2 on fourth down.
"I think a little of that comes from the previous game, just learning from those mistakes and taking what you can get," At the same time, being manageable on first and second down, making third down a lot easier, making great reads and making quick reads."
The Texans (1-4) face a Colts defense that allowed former MVP Lamar Jackson to complete 37-of-43 passes for 442 yards, four touchdowns, no interceptions and 140.5 passer rating in come-from-behind victory Monday night.
Colts All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard did not participate in practice Wednesday with ankle and shoulder injuries listed. Starting cornerback Rock Ya-Sin also missed practice with an ankle injury and defensive end Kwity Page was limited with a hamstring injury.
Mills still expects to see a tough front-seven Sunday at Indianapolis.
"We’re going to have to handle them and then try to just make plays on the edge. Also, mix the run and pass game up, keep them guessing, like I said.
Just got to go out there and execute."
Brandon Scott manages digital content for SportsRadio 610. Follow him on Twitter @brandonkscott.
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