The NFL preseason doesn’t count. No matter how great a team may have looked, or how many wins they stacked — as the Houston Texans did with a 17-13 victory over the New Orleans Saints Aug. 13 — they don’t count.
The same goes for mistakes and losses. Interceptions chucked, fumbles lost, or defeats don’t count against a player or team.
Nevertheless Texans quarterback Davis Mills treated his two series against the Saints inside NRG Stadium the same as if he were going against them with the first win of the regular season on the line.
“I think it’s kind of the same,” Mills told reporters. “You’re not getting some of the exotic pressures that you’ll get later in the season when teams really start game planning against you. But I mean, there’s still guys on the other side of the field that are NFL players and are extremely talented. You’ve got to go out there and play to the best of your abilities and win each rep on any given play. You can’t take anything for granted.”
Mills took to his “can’t go broke turning a profit” philosophy as he was a perfect 3-3 for 14 yards. Both of Houston’s first-team offensive drives ended with three-and-outs, which technically is better than ending in a turnover.
Even though the Texans still have two more preseason games, the mood in the locker room is to continue treating the next eight quarters as consequentially as regular season play.
Said Mills: “You’ve got to go out there and perform. We’re stressing that in the locker room too. These games do matter. Any time we’re keeping score out there, we want to win. The team believes that, and that’s what we did tonight.”
The Texans get back in action against the Los Angeles Rams Aug. 19 at SoFi Stadium.