Texans draft quarterback Davis Mills in third round amid Deshaun Watson allegations
The Houston Texans want to make sure they are covered at quarterback. With Deshaun Watson facing multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, the team selected Stanford quarterback Davis Mills in the third round of the 2021 NFL draft on Friday night.
While Davis was selected with the No. 67 overall pick, it was the Texans' first pick of this draft. The team traded away both its 2021 first- and second-round pick to acquire offensive linemen Laremy Tunsil from the Miami Dolphins in 2019.
Mills, 22, joins the team after three seasons at Stanford. He played in 14 games at Stanford, starting 11. In those games, Mills threw for 18 touchdowns against eight interceptions. Mills ranked No. 70 on the top 100 draft prospects list of Yahoo Sports draft analyst Eric Edholm.
Mills has dealt with knee and leg injuries in high school and college. He's considered a developmental prospect who may need a year before he starts in the NFL, according to Edholm.
What does Davis Mills pick mean for Deshaun Watson?
With Watson facing allegations of sexual misconduct, his status in 2021 is up in the air. The NFL is conducting an investigation of the allegations and it could get involved before the offseason is over. League commissioner Roger Goodell has the power to suspend Watson — or place him on the commissioner's exempt list — depending on what the NFL finds from its investigation.
Even before those allegations emerged, Watson wanted out of Houston. While he was adamant about a trade, both new general manager Nick Caserio and head coach David Culley expressed confidence Watson would remain with the team to start 2021.
The Houston Chronicle reported that at least eight teams were interested in acquiring Watson before the allegations surfaced. Now, it seems unlikely any team will acquire Watson until — at the very least — the Houston police complete their investigation.
With that much uncertainty facing Watson, the Texans decided it was in their best interest to take a Mills in the third round.
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