Who is Texans' backup QB if they bench C.J. Stroud in playoff game?

There's no easy way to say this: C.J. Stroud looked absolutely cooked against the New England Patriots through one half of Sunday's AFC Divisional Round playoff game.

The third-year quarterback had a full-on meltdown against the Patriots' defense, throwing four picks while constantly finding himself under siege in the pocket. Stroud's struggles in themselves are one thing, especially in the context of respective injuries to receiver Nico Collins, tight end Dalton Schultz, and running back Woody Marks, as well as a porous offensive line. Still, that's no excuse. If anything, Stroud's decision-making should be better, knowing how much things have been stacked against him. So, for him to play like this while the Texans' defense holds the Patriots' offense to just 134 total yards so far and only a single third-down conversion is unacceptable.

Houston's defense might be so good that all Stroud has to do is not LOSE the game, and he's failing in that mission. Remarkably so, even.

That brings about an important question. Who is Stroud's backup if Texans coaches indeed decide to bench him during the halftime locker room?

It's none other than veteran Davis Mills. This is Mills' sixth NFL season, and he actually held it down for Houston earlier this year with a 3-0 record as Stroud recovered from injury. Mills might not necessarily be as talented as Stroud, but perhaps he'll do less to lose the game as the Texans' defense potentially claws the team back into the game. They have that capacity, if given the chance.

At the very least, benching Stroud is a decision that Texans coaches should really consider before they're staring down the end of their season.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: C.J. Stroud: Who is Texans' backup QB if he gets benched vs. Patriots?