Texans coach DeMeco Ryans on if C.J. Stroud will play vs. Bears or not

The worst thing about NFL preseason games is that we rarely get to see the starters play. We might see the franchise quarterback play a series or two or even a full quarter, but beyond that most of the snaps are taken by backups, guys on the roster bubble and undrafted rookies desperately trying to secure a spot on the initial 53-man roster.

The Houston Texans will begin their preseason schedule on Thursday night against the Chicago Bears in the annual Hall of Fame game. Yesterday Houston head coach DeMeco Ryans was asked if we will get to see C.J. Stroud play at all. Here's how he responded.

Funny. Our best guess is that we won't see Stroud anywhere but on the sidelines. While it's annoying to have to wait another six weeks to see him in action, sitting their star QB in the most meaningless game of the year is probably the right call.

Stroud did see some playing time in last year's preseason games. However, he was a rookie then and as yet the team had no idea that he was already one of the top-10 starting quarterbacks in the NFL. Protecting the franchise's most-valuable asset is far more important than whatever Stroud might gain from a few reps in August.

So, most likely we will see a lot of young gun Davis Mills at quarterback , and perhaps a little bit of veterans Case Keenum and Tim Boyle.

Mills was a third-round pick by Houston in the 2021 NFL draft, but he led the league in interceptions the following year with 15. All together, Mills has appeared in 34 games, earning 26 starts. He's gone 5-19-1 in those games, totaling just under 6,000 passing yards, 35 touchdowns and 25 picks. His success rate is 41.6% and his passer rating is 83.0.

Mills is listed as the second quarterback on the team's unofficial depth chart behind Stroud.