Watson does his part
Texans rookie QB Deshaun Watson produces his share of highlight-reel moments, throwing five touchdown passes.
Prime time has been good to Deshaun Watson, with a win in his first NFL start earlier this season and any number of heroics under the lights during his national championship run at Clemson.
Watson had his moments Sunday night, too, with five touchdown passes while completing 16-of-31 for 261 yards, albeit with some of his highlight-reel plays — 181 yards and three scores — coming with the game slipping out of reach in a 42-34 loss.
With Alex Smith and the Chiefs hogging camera time and the Texans’ defense decimated by injuries to Whitney Mercilus and J.J. Watt, Watson didn’t have enough screen time to alter the outcome — the Texans had possession for 21:43 — and, early on, didn’t always make the most of the moments he had.
Kansas City scored on its first four possessions and 8-of-10 for the game, running more plays in the first half (43) than the Titans managed for an entire game (41) a week ago. So the Texans needed ship-to-stern efficiency on offense and didn’t get it.
Watson, however, three times pulled the Texans within single digits and threw touchdown passes of 6, 34 and 1 yards to Deandre Hopkins and 9 and 48 yards to Will Fuller.
“Every game is a learning experience for him,” coach Bill O’Brien said. “He’s an excellent young quarterback, and I thought he kept competing until the end. He’s a great kid and a lot of fun to coach, and he obviously has a great future.”
It wasn’t enough, but Watson at least demonstrated that he perseveres through the final whistle.
“Just keep fighting, keep the leadership up with the guys,” he said. “Being able to adjust during the game if you see something different and knowing what the other team is doing. It’s the next man mentality and keep moving forward.”
When he gets a chance to look at film, he might pick up a thing or two from Smith, who completed 29-of-37 for 324 yards and three scores and had 19 yards on five scrambles, for the NFL’s only remaining unbeaten team.
“They played better than us,” Watson said. “We had opportunities that we didn’t take advantage of. They got us off the field, and their offense stayed on.”
The Texans closed well, scoring on four of their last six possessions, but a slow start didn’t help matters on a night when Smith and the Chiefs were almost letter-perfect.
Houston, by contrast, started 0-for-3, including D’Onta Foreman’s first-quarter fumble. They broke through with an eight-play, 75-yard march in the second quarter, most of it on the ground, that included a 13–yard scramble by Watson and his 6-yard scoring throw to Hopkins, but that was it as the Chiefs led 23-7 at halftime, with Watson completing just 4-of-12 for 60 yards.
After having possession for just over nine minutes in the first half, the Texans’ offense snapped into gear in the second half, marching 78 yards in seven plays to pull within 23-13.
On the touchdown, Watson pump faked to Hopkins before pulling the ball down, scrambling to his right and throwing to the right to Fuller. He completed 3-of-4 for 20 yards on the drive, which got a boost on a 31-yard pass interference penalty on former Rice defensive back Phillip Gaines.
That pulled the Texans within 10 points before the Chiefs added a field goal, but Watson responded again.
On third-and-8 from the 32, he scrambled 16 yards. Two plays later, he avoided Chiefs defensive end Rakeem Nunez-Roches, switching the ball to his left hand to avoid a potential strip sack, and threw downfield to Fuller behind Kansas City defensive back Terrance Mitchell for a 48yard score that once again pulled the Texans within single digits.
Kansas City kept scoring to keep the game well in hand, but Watson’s big plays kept coming. Gifted with good field possession by Fuller’s 49-yard punt return, he threw a 34-yard laser to Hopkins, again beating Mitchell over the middle, for his fourth touchdown pass.
And then, with time clicking down, he moved the Texans 75 yards to a score as time expired, completing 4-of-7 with two spikes with throws of 21 and 42 yards to tight end Stephen Anderson and the TD throw to Hopkins on the final play of the game. He then added a twopoint run.
Watson’s five touchdown passes gave him 11 for the year, setting a Texans rookie record. He was sacked three times for 13 yards and had a passer rating of 119.8.