Watson learning less leads to more
Fewer yards in wins replace gaudy stats from early losses
When the Texans lost their first three games, quarterback Deshaun Watson said he was experiencing losing for the first time, and he didn’t like it.
At Clemson, where he played in national championship games after his sophomore and junior seasons and won one title, he was 32-3 as a starter.
Three games into this season, the Texans were wallowing in last place in the AFC South. Watson’s record as an NFL starter was 3-6. Now that he has helped the Texans transform their season with an eightgame winning streak going into Sunday’s game against Cleveland at NRG Stadium, Watson can look back on the lessons he learned from losing.
“Each game is a new experience,” he said Wednesday. “You’re going to deal with a different situation, especially being so young in this league. Each game was a different test, and we learned a little something about myself, a little something about this team and this offense.”
When the Texans were losing by seven to New England, three to Tennessee and five to the New York Giants, Watson was getting comfortable in his return from a torn ACL that ended his rookie season after seven games, including six starts.
Then Watson ignited a 37-34 overtime victory at Indianapolis, throwing for 375 yards and a touchdown to start the winning streak that made the Texans the first team in the NFL’s 99-year history to overcome an 0-3 start with an eight-game winning streak.
As the winning streak has increased, Watson has become more confident in Bill O’Brien’s offense and his play-calling. He’s more comfortable in his development.
The partially collapsed lung and broken rib Watson suffered in the 19-16 overtime victory over Dallas forced him to become more cautious. After the beating he took in the 20-13 conquest of Buffalo that evened the Texans’ record at 3-3, O’Brien had to do more to help protect Watson.
The luxury bus ride Watson took to Jacksonville, where the Texans won 20-7 for their most decisive victory, showed the serious nature of his lung injury.
In Monday’s 34-17 victory over Tennessee, Watson looked better physically than any time since getting injured against Dallas. He threw two touchdown passes to Demaryius Thomas and ran for another score. He also had a 34-yard run to set up a touchdown.
Among the lessons Watson has learned is he can go 29for-42 for 375 yards or 24-for-40 for 385 yards and still lose.
In the last five games, O’Brien has dialed back the passing game. Watson hasn’t thrown more than 24 passes.
He was asked if he’s envious of quarterbacks like Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes, New Orleans’ Drew Brees and the Los Angeles Rams’ Jared Goff getting to air it out so much.
“Not at all,” Watson said. “As long as we’re winning and I’m doing my job and trying to protect the ball (and) putting points on the board and getting these W’s, that’s all I care about.
“The stats will come, but right now, I’m just focused on winning games and letting that speak for itself.”
When the Texans were 3-3, Watson averaged 36 attempts, 23 completions and 300 yards. He had nine touchdown passes and seven interceptions. He was sacked 25 times and knocked down an additional 65 times.
In the five games since O’Brien started relying more heavily on the run, Watson has averaged 23 attempts, 16 completions and 202 yards. He had 11 touchdowns and two interceptions. He has been sacked 12 times and knocked down 20 more times.
Now that Watson has helped engineer the winning streak, an 8-3 record and a two-game lead in the AFC South, O’Brien was asked if he thinks Watson learned something during the first three games.
“Deshaun is a very evenkeeled guy (who) learns every day,” O’Brien said. “We were just in a meeting, and he was very focused, very alert, asked a lot of questions. I think whether it’s a win or a loss, he takes in a lot of information, and he remembers it.
“Obviously, he’s got a lot of talent, but it takes so much more than talent. One of his best traits is his memory. He remembers a lot, and he tries to fix the mistakes and keep doing the things he’s doing well.”
Now that Watson is feeling better, he’s more rambunctious. He ran nine times for 70 yards against the Titans. Don’t expect him to get more conservative. His mobility is a big part of his game. He learned a lesson the hard way against the Cowboys – be smart on the run and not reckless.
“It’s just the opportunity and what I see at the time,” he said about running against the Titans. “I try to take what the defense gives me and try to spark a big play in the offense and continue to move the chains.
“It’s usually not the first option, but if it’s there, I take advantage of those opportunities. I give our offense another weapon the defense has got to worry about.”
And what a weapon he’s become. That doesn’t keep fans — not to mention everyone in the organization — from holding their breath when he takes off. They remember how devastating it was for the Texans to lose him last season.
They know that, with Watson, the Texans are capable of beating anybody anywhere.