PERFECT PRESENCE
Texans’ Watson still exhibiting special flair that compelled ex-GM to move up in draft
BALTIMORE — Often sporting events fall short of the hype, with the excitement leading up to the game surpassing the actual game.
That could happen Sunday when the Texans face the Ravens in a matchup of two of the brightest young star quarterbacks in the NFL.
Don’t bet on it, though.
See, one of those guys is Deshaun Watson.
He is capable of having a bad game. All players are, of course. But Watson’s makeup and history suggests that he will again deliver a special performance. That is just who he is.
Who knows whether Sunday’s game against the Ravens proves to be a historic milestone or the start of a legendary on-the-field rivalry with Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson.
The outcome will almost certainly factor into the playoff race, with Sunday’s winner earning a decided edge in the chase for a first-round playoff bye.
Baltimore (7-2) is in first place in the AFC North. The Texans (6-3) already have wins over AFC West leaders Kansas City (6-4) and Oakland (5-4), and host Tom Brady and the AFC East-leading Patriots (8-1) in two weeks.
Every time I try to explain why Watson is different than any quarterback the Texans have ever had, instead of pointing to the statistics, I reference conversations with former Texans general manager Rick Smith.
Smith, who pulled off the trade with Cleveland to move up 13 spots to draft Watson in the first round, was clearly smitten with Watson as a player, a person, a leader.
Smith was enamored with Watson’s presence as much as his talent, a presence that he says he felt when watching Watson lead Clemson over Alabama in the national championship game.
In talking about Watson in those months before he took the field as a rookie, Smith never tried to sell him, never tried to build him up. He would simply ask, “Have you spent any time around him yet?”
I have never been around a coach or general manager who believed in a young player more. It didn’t take long for the rest of us to find out why.
Watson is a gamer. A pure winner, who lifts everyone around him.
Ignore the debate about whether quarterbacks should have a wins and losses record. Just note that Watson so affects the Texans winning and losing that the team has lost just 11 games he has started.
The largest margin of defeat was eight points, and more than half (six) of the losses were by three points or less.
When Watson is on the field, the Texans always have a chance.
Watson faces opposing defenses, not quarterbacks, but he knows who is on the other side of the field. His best games this season have come against bigname QBs.
Watson relishes these types of challenges, these measuring sticks, and rarely does he disappoint when faced with them.
The Texans went 3-1, averaging almost 35 points a game, against Drew Brees and the Saints, Philip Rivers and the Chargers, Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs and Matt Ryan and the Falcons.
That Jackson has elevated his game in his second year to even be in a conversation with the above names says a lot about his play.
As much fun as this should be for fans, Watson and Jackson often talk about how much fun they have playing the sport.
Yeah, fun.
The NFL wasn’t designed for quarterbacks like them to have fun. Running for your life isn’t supposed to be a pleasurable experience.
NFL coaches used to not allow players like Watson, and more so Jackson, to use all of their tools.
By handcuffing quarterbacks to the pocket, they limited the field for eligible signal-callers.
It helps that rules have changed.
There was a time that a significant amount of unnecessary roughness was applauded. Now, a good percentage of plain ol’ roughness is deemed unnecessary.
Pounding a quarterback senseless with vicious hits is now frowned upon.
Picking up Vince Young in the pocket and slamming him on his head, as the Pittsburgh Steelers did in a game barely a decade ago, would draw a fine, maybe an ejection and possibly a suspension these days. It didn’t even earn a 15-yard penalty when it happened.
When you have fearless runners like Watson and Jackson boosted by strict rules to protect the quarterback, you open the door for beautiful expressions of athleticism that these two deliver each week.
At any point, on any play, they can deliver something no one has ever seen.
The NFL game has changed significantly in recent years with the acceptance of the readoption game.
Not long ago, few could have imagined a matchup featuring quarterbacks who play like Watson and Jackson could be a game between legitimate Most Valuable Player candidates.
So many of the game-changers before them — Randall Cunningham, Steve Young, Michael Vick and Young — didn’t really change the game. They were ahead of their time.
Half the 50-yard rushing seasons by quarterbacks have come since 2010.
Jackson, who is just ahead of Watson and behind only Russell Wilson in Vegas’ MVP odds, was 5 years old when the Texans joined the league. The MVP that year was Rich Gannon, who totaled 156 yards on the ground.
Jackson rushed for 152 yards in one game a few weeks ago.
Watson still has a decided advantage over Jackson as a passer. As much as the game has embraced innovative schemes that allow players like Jackson to thrive, Watson’s ability to throw the ball downfield is what separates the two.
That invisible, untouchable thing that Smith was so sure anyone around Watson could see and feel is why he is one of the top players in the league.