Texans QB Stroud to miss second straight game

HOUSTON — Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud will miss his second straight game due to a concussion, coach DeMeco Ryans announced Thursday.

Backup quarterback Davis Mills’ will again start in place of Stroud when the Texans visit the Tennessee Titans(1-8) Sunday in Nashville.. Mills has a chance to build on his memorable Week 10 performance, his first start in over two years, when helped Houston (4-5) rally from a 19-point deficit in the second half to defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 36-29. Mills had two touchdowns passing and capped the dramatic rally with a 14-yard scoring run with 31 seconds left.

New York Jets on December 10, forcing him to miss the next two games against Tennessee and the Cleveland Browns, respectively. The concussion Stroud is currently dealing with occurred in the Texans’ Week 9 contest against the Denver Broncos as the quarterback was attempting to slide on a 3rd-down play and was hit by Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine, who lunged into Stroud’s chest, which caused the quarterback’s head to hit the ground.

Stroud has not practiced since sustaining the concussion against Denver, which could complicate his potential return in Week 12 as the Texans have a short week before facing the Buffalo Bills on Thursday night football.

Mills completed 60% of his throws in last week’s win for 292 yards, two scores through the air and an interception.

Along with Stroud, Ryans also ruled out safety Jalen Pitre (concussion) and kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn(quad).