Watson’s biggest challenge
With departure of favorite receiver Hopkins, Texans QB works with new crop of skill players
Deshaun Watson and DeAndre Hopkins had built a seemingly unbreakable connection.
Their timing and chemistry stemmed from a foundation of trust, friendship, talent, body language and a shared love and knowledge of football.
What’s understood never needed explaining between the two former Clemson standouts, on and off the field.
Watson delivered spirals at extreme angles to Hopkins’ outstretched fingertips with a bold confidence that the ball was in safe hands. And Hopkins contorted his body with cornerbacks draped all over him, making acrobatic catches that propelled him to All-Pro status three times.
In three seasons and 38 regularseason games together, they combined for 264 catches, 3,343 yards and 25 touchdowns.
The ultra-successful tandem was abruptly separated in March when Texans coach and general manager Bill O’Brien traded Hopkins to Arizona in exchange for running back David Johnson and a second-round draft pick. It was the most controversial offseason move in the NFL as a contract dispute and a deteriorated relationship between the coach and Hopkins led to his departure.
Tension had grown behind the scenes for a long time partially due to Hopkins rarely practicing during the week because of multiple lingering injuries before finding a way to tough it out and excel on Sundays.
Now, Watson and the Texans are adapting to life without Hopkins. That means relying on a multi-layered approach to throwing the football, including new wide receivers Brandin Cooks and Randall Cobb in addition to returning receivers Will Fuller and Kenny Stills and Johnson, one of the top pass-catching backs in the league.
Life without Hopkins is the greatest challenge of Watson’s young career heading into his fourth NFL season.
It’s a major adjustment for the 24-year-old, who made it a habit to have multiple conversations with Hopkins throughout the day inside the Texans’ locker room.
“It’s definitely a little different because his locker was across for me,” Watson said. “The last three years I would come in, and of course I would have seen him and chopped it up with him and talked to him about the offseason and different things. That’s part of the business.
“It’s something that the organization had decided to do, but we got some guys that came in — Cobb, Cooks, David Johnson — veteran guys who have played a lot of football. They’re coming in and ready to work. We definitely have good additions and we’re trying to put all the pieces together and build that chemistry.”
No time to criticize
Watson has accepted that what’s done is done. The unpopular decision to move on from Hopkins initially triggered frustration, shock and anger in the locker room. Watson learned about the transaction in March after a spring workout.
“It was just of course out of the blue, different,” Watson said. “I wasn’t expecting it, but like I said, that’s just the way the business goes. That’s something that I have pretty much no control of. The organization had to do what they had to do, and D-Hop, he had to do what he had to do. We still have a relationship, we still have a bond, but it was just different of course.”
Rather than criticize the move, Watson has been diplomatic in his approach to questions about what happened. At the end of the day, he’s the quarterback and he’ll throw to whomever is on the field with him. He doesn’t like that Hopkins is gone, but he’s not dwelling on the trade and he’s working diligently to form relationships with his new downfield targets.
“Because that’s not my pay (grade), I can’t control that,” Watson said. “I feel the way I feel, but it’s not my place and time to be able to speak on that because I didn’t know the whole background story on what exactly happened. That’s their business and that’s their lane. I’m not going to step out of my lane and get in that.
“But I know that me and Hop have a great relationship. I know that me and OB (O’Brien) have a great relationship. But that’s something that I can’t play both sides in. I’m just going to sit in the middle and watch it from afar. That’s their business and I’m not going to get into it.”
New options
Where this leaves the Texans and Watson is with a vastly different strategy to be executed following a virtual offseason dictated by the coronavirus pandemic.
Hopkins was targeted 150 times last season and caught 104 passes for 1,165 yards and seven touchdowns. During the past three years with the Texans, Hopkins was targeted 31.4 percent of the time.
Fuller was the second-most targeted receiver last year with 71, catching 49 passes for 670 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games played.
Hopkins’ overall targets and average (9.4 per game) ranked him fifth in the NFL last year behind the New Orleans Saints’ Michael Thomas (185, 11.6), the Atlanta Falcons’ Julio Jones (157, 10.5), the Chicago Bears’ Allen Robinson (154, 9.6) and the New England Patriots’ Julian Edelman (153, 9.6).
When the trade was executed,
Hopkins predicted Watson will continue to find a way to succeed without him because that’s simply his nature and skill level.
“Deshaun is a warrior,” Hopkins told ESPN. “Deshaun is a competitor. As long as he has the football in his hand, that’s all he cares about. Deshaun’s an elite quarterback, one of the best quarterbacks I’ve had a chance to play with so far.
“That’s my boy. I wish him nothing but the best. I’m in the NFC, so I hope I see him in the Super Bowl. Obviously, his best target is a guy you can depend on, not being there for him, I’m pretty sure that would impact any quarterback’s game. If he’s able to make players better, and I’m pretty sure that that’s what he’s going to do, he’s going to rally his team up to help him win.”
That’s what the Texans are banking on. Literally. They’re in contract negotiations with Watson regarding a long-term deal that could ultimately pay him in the $40 million per year neighborhood.
Watson is the first quarterback since Miami Dolphins Hall of Fame selection Dan Marino to average at least 7 yards per attempt with a 5 percent touchdown rate in his first three NFL seasons, according to statistician Warren Sharp. Watson has a 24-13 record as a starter. He’s passed for 9,716 career yards, 71 touchdowns and 29 interceptions, leading the Texans to consecutive AFC South division titles.
It’s still all about the QB
And the Texans are counting on Watson’s trademark ability to improvise and make new relationships with newcomers such as Cooks, Cobb and Johnson while continuing to find ways to keep the chains moving and light up the scoreboard.
“There’s a whole lot that Deshaun does that’s uncoachable,” said Texans assistant quarterbacks coach T.J. Yates, a retired Texans quarterback. “That’s what makes him great. That’s what makes him the player that he is, is because you can tell him to do all this stuff, but when stuff breaks down, which happens all the time in the NFL, like blitzes coming that you’re not prepared for, guys come free and when he has to go put on that Superman cape and he does, that’s the stuff where you’re sitting on film and you just have to tell him good job and keep doing that.”
The way that the Texans’ offense could operate now is going to be different.
When Watson breaks the huddle, he’ll have two speedsters outside in Cooks (4.33 in the 40-yard dash) and Fuller (4.28). And he’ll have a proven reliable slot receiver in Cobb for the first time in his career. He can also count on tight ends Darren Fells and Jordan Akins as a red-zone threat or throw it short to running backs David Johnson and Duke Johnson (no relation).
“The big thing is DeAndre was a great player when he was here and we have a great core of receivers right now that we’re moving on,” Texans receivers coach John Perry said. “Nothing really changes with your approach or how you do things. The big thing is these guys are professionals. You’re not like hovering over them or anything like that, like a helicopter parent or something.”
As a leader, Watson has been proactive about getting to know his new teammates. That included working out with them over the summer before reporting to training camp.
“We’ve kind of been making sure that we’re picking the right time to work out and doing the right things and taking the precautions that we need to make sure everyone is staying safe,” Watson said. “Everyone has a family. They have kids and a wife. So, making sure they’re staying safe, that their wife and the kids are on the same page of what we’re doing and who we’ve been around and checking temperature and things like that, and staying sanitized.
“It’s been good the times we’ve been working out, but it’s also been difficult and kind of nervewracking because we haven’t been able to work out as much as we’ve wanted to. At the same time, we’ve been FaceTiming, texting, doing a lot of mental work so whenever they came in, they were ready and prepared.”
If Fuller can remain healthy for the first time in his career after undergoing double-groin surgery this offseason, Watson could have a formidable outside presence and some easier deep throws.
“Will’s going to ball out,” Watson said. “Will’s going to be one of the best receivers in the league. He came back a lot stronger, a lot faster. Will’s really good, very confident in himself and what he did over the offseason.
“I’m very confident in what he can do. We all are as an organization and as a team. There’s no doubt that Will can take that role and do great things with it.”
Watson is also counting on the continued improvement of an offensive line that returns all five starters in Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil, left guard Max Scharping, center Nick Martin, right guard Zach Fulton and right tackle Tytus Howard. Watson and Tunsil worked out together in Houston with Billy Voltaire this offseason and have formed a strong bond since he was acquired via a trade from the Miami Dolphins last year.
“That’s the thing, just the way that he came in, it was just so fast,” Watson said. “Being the left tackle of a very, very complex offense where you have to think, you have to be able to maneuver and be able to switch on the fly.
“This offseason, having a full season to know the whole package to know the whole offense and see him work and see him get healthy, it’s been incredible. We’ve built that chemistry off the field as more than just being a teammate, as a brother. I know he’s going to have another, even better season this year.”
Watching Watson’s improvisational skills tends to leave his coaches with a familiar takeaway: Keep it up.
Watson is capable of transforming a broken play into a touchdown or buying his receivers extra time with his elusiveness. When the pocket collapses, Watson can always take off and run the football. He’s rushed for 1,233 career yards and 14 touchdowns.
The Texans have a lot of confidence in what Watson is going to do next.
“He’s still a very young quarterback learning lots of different nuances of defenses,” Yates said. “Really his next step in the maturation process as a quarterback, learning defenses, quarterbacking stuff, mechanics-wise and really getting the most out of his body in his mechanics, I think are really going to take him over the top and take that next step.”