Rising QBs?
The Texans’ Deshaun Watson is among NFL signal-callers with much at stake in the preseason
It was an NFL version of Show and Tell.
Deshaun Watson, the Houston Texans’ rookie quarterback, came to work Wednesday and got the bonus of watching Tom Brady for another day of joint practices with the New England Patriots. (This included Brady’s occasional fits when passes didn’t go exactly as planned.) When it was over, Brady, 40, took a few minutes to drop knowledge on Watson.
How symbolic.
With five rings, Brady is the face of NFL greatness. Watson, 21, coming off a national championship at Clemson and hailed by his college coach as the Michael Jordan of the NFL draft, represents the future.
When Brady broke into the NFL, Watson was breaking into kindergarten. They are linked by Bill O’Brien, the Texans coach who was once Brady’s position coach and coordinator.
“He was just giving me a little tip here and there about this league and this system and Coach OB,” Watson told reporters. “It was a good talk.”
Perhaps Brady warned Watson about how much of a stickler O’Brien can be on details. Brady probably didn’t have to tell Watson that in his first three years in Houston, O’Brien went through eight starting quarterbacks. Assuming he ultimately unseats Tom Savage — and Watson seems to be closing the gap — he will be No. 9 and, just maybe, the one to stick and blossom beyond O’Brien’s wildest dreams.
In any event, with both teams headed to Houston for a preseason game Saturday, the time with Brady has been a perk any young quarterback could appreciate. Yet for all the respect Watson has for Brady, there’s mutual admiration. Brady saw several Clemson games while bunkered in hotels last season and became familiar with Watson’s game.
“Watching him play, he’s got a great future,” Brady said. “He has all of the abilities.”
Including some that Brady, now an all-time great after entering the NFL in 2000 as a sixth-rounder, might wish he possessed. Watson, with a quick burst and darting moves, has the mobility to scramble or buy time to extend plays.
“If I could run a 4.7, man, I could’ve been the first overall pick,” Brady said, chuckling as he talked 40-yard dash times. “Unfortunately, I ran a 5.2. I wouldn’t be a first overall pick. Change that. I probably would’ve been a fourth-rounder.
“I wish I could make some of those plays,” he added. “Look, every player has strengths and weaknesses. You learn to play to your strengths, and you learn to develop your weaknesses. I’m still working on those things in my 18th year.”
Brady’s legacy has been built on his determination to get the most out of his given athletic skills. That’s he’s still playing at an MVP level is a testament to several variables, including his training, nutrition, efficiency and durability. Mental sharpness matters, too.
Yet there’s also that raw, dogged determination that Watson and others witnessed on the practice field. Brady not only barked at teammates, he chastised himself, too. On one play, a pass directed to tight end Rob Gronkowski was deflected by a Texans defender. Brady was obviously bothered, putting his hands to his helmet. It was the right play against the right look. Just the wrong execution.
“I mean, we’ve got to make that play,” Brady said. “It’s got to be a better throw.”
The game-like intensity during practice is one of the pillars of Brady’s success and maybe as good as anything that the old pro can demonstrate as an example to Watson.
“I’m always pretty frustrated, throughout the day and practices,” Brady said. “You’re just trying to create some urgency and ask guys to dig a little deeper.
“Sometimes, things don’t go great for the first three quarters, but you’ve got to keep grinding, keep digging. A lot of times, football is momentum. So if things don’t go well early, you find a little rhythm and then you can rattle off 28 points.”
The Atlanta Falcons know. In February, the Patriots pulled off the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history by scoring 31 unanswered points to beat them in overtime.
Watson knows, too, and even better after observing Brady. Asked what impressed him most, Watson mentioned consistency and how it’s achieved on the practice field.
“Each and every play is a game rep,” he said.
And every training camp is a time to hone skills and perspective, though Brady insists it’s now easier than it has ever been.
“When you’re younger, you don’t know what to do,” Brady said. “After 17 years, I know how to prepare. I’m never sore. I could practice twice a day if they let us do that.”
Take notes, Deshaun.
“Football is momentum. So if things don’t go well early, you find a little rhythm and then you can rattle off 28 points.” Patriots QB Tom Brady on intensity and staying focused in games