Kellen Mond Was Told Texans Would Draft Him Before Vikings Picked Him at No. 66

The Houston Texans selected Stanford quarterback Davis Mills with the 67th pick in the 2021 draft, and it appears they would've gone with a different option in their ideal world.

The father of former Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond said the Texans made it clear they planned to take Mond, only for the Minnesota Vikings to beat them to the punch with the 66th pick.

"[There was a] phone call from his agent, text message, and the agent said, 'Hey, the Houston Texans are getting ready to select [Mond] at pick 67,'" Kevin Mond said, per the Pioneer Press' Chris Tomasson. "So, we're sitting [at the San Antonio family home] on the couch and [Mond] gets the phone call a couple of minutes later and it's a team.

"Then, when he hung up the phone, he goes, 'I'm going to the Vikings.' The Texans had already told his agent they're getting ready to take him at pick 67. The Vikings happened to have the pick 66."

For now, it looks like a bit of bad luck for Mond.

In addition to playing for the Aggies, the 21-year-old is a native of San Antonio, so suiting up for the Texans would've put him much closer to home. Based on Houston's quarterback situation, he could've started at some point as a rookie, too.

Deshaun Watson's status is unclear since he is the subject of 22 lawsuits centered around allegations of sexual assault and misconduct. ESPN's Sarah Barshop wrote Tuesday that "it seems unlikely" Watson will play for the Texans again.

Before news of the allegations broke, Adam Schefter of ESPN (via Barshop) reported in January that the three-time Pro Bowler had requested a trade.

Tyrod Taylor seems the most likely candidate to start in Week 1, which would leave Houston in need of a long-term solution at quarterback. The Texans presumably targeted Mond to address that issue and had to pivot to Mills.

Mond, meanwhile, will back up Kirk Cousins.

The Vikings' decision to pick Mond seemingly points to a level of dissatisfaction with Cousins, who threw for 4,265 yards and 35 touchdowns with 13 interceptions last year. Cousins is a serviceable quarterback but has a clear ceiling.

He has two years left on his contract, though, so Mond might have to bide his time before he gets a shot.

But playing the waiting game in Minnesota might be preferable since he got to steer clear of the general dysfunction in Houston.