Passing prolific, but run game stagnant
Quarterback Watson carries offense that has become one-dimensional
Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has a vastly different vision and agenda when he breaks the huddle this season.
Unlike previous seasons, when the Pro Bowl passer frequently zeroed in on AllPro wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, including 150 targets for 104 catches last year, Watson has adapted to a multiple-target strategy.
Since the controversial offseason trade of Hopkins to the Cardinals for running back David Johnson and draft picks, Watson is delivering the football to several different players. The distribution of passes is divided fairly evenly among wide receivers Will Fuller, Brandin Cooks and Randall Cobb.
“It’s little bit different for him,” Texans assistant quarterbacks coach T. J. Yates said. “When you have that big-time X receiver that we had in Hop, sometimes you can get locked in on only throwing to one guy. That’s what you’re kind of used to. You kind of go to the style we are now. We’re distributing the ball.
“Deshaun is becoming a little more of a point guard back there. His mental aspect of the game has helped in that — being able to read coverages, knowing where to go with the ball versus which coverage and when not to go somewhere. He’s doing a good job of getting the ball around to all of our playmakers.”
Fuller leads the Texans with 490 receiving yards and five touchdowns off 31 catches on 47 targets.
Cooks, acquired in a trade from the Rams, has 34 receptions for 427 yards and two touchdowns on 51 targets.
And Cobb, signed to a three-year, $27 million freeagent deal in March, has operated out of the slot for 30 receptions for 372 yards and two scores on 38 targets.
“It’s very tough when you have a group or a couple newreceivers, especially in the COVID time that we had,” Yates said. “Going straight into a season with a couple new receivers is never easy because it never really clicks until you do it full-speed in the game.
“I think the way Randall and Brandin and Deshaun have grown together just over these first couple weeks of the season has been evident. They’re starting to click more and more as the season goes on.”
Although the Texans are off to a 1-6 start after winning AFC South titles the previous two seasons, it isn’t because of Watson. Signed to a four-year, $156 million contract extension before the season, he ranks second in the NFL with 2,095 passing yards, behind Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan’s 2,181.
Watson leads the NFL in yards per pass thrown (8.8), is tied for sixth in touchdown passes (15), ranks sixth in passer rating (108.7) and stands seventh in completion percentage (69.5).
Watson is on pace to finish with a career-high 4,784 yards and 34 touchdown passes.
“Yeah, he’s playing at an extremely high level right now,” Yates said. “It’s fun to coach him every day. It’s fun to see his energy that he brings to practice and how he comes to work every single day trying to get better.
“It’s showing for us on the field. Obviously, we can all do a lot of things better, him included. We’ve got to do whatever we’ve got to do to get back in the win column.”
Watson has posted five consecutive passer ratings of at least 109.1, including a season-high 138.9 mark in an overtime loss to the Tennessee Titans in which he passed for four touchdowns.
Watson has six touchdown passes and zero interceptions over the past two games.
“He’s doing a good job of really taking care of the football, especially the past couple weeks,” Texans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly said. “He’s doing a really good job of making good decisions. For the most part, (he’s) getting through his reads and finding the open receiver. A lot of credit goes to Deshaun for doing that, but a lot of credit goes to the wide receivers because they’re running good routes, and multiple people are winning, and multiple people are getting open.
“We’ve just got to continue to work with D on being consistent, sticking to the read. He does some really great things. Our goal is any time he takes the field to do that for the entirety of the game. He’s been close. He’s playing at a high level, but my expectation for him is that he’s able to take that next step.”
Watson has had to carry a one-dimensional offense because Johnson has struggled to break tackles in close quarters or elude defenders when he’s had any blocking to speak of. Johnson has had only two strong games, a 96-yard performance in a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars and 77 yards and a touchdown in a season-opening loss to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Johnson, who’s averaging 3.9 yards per carry, has acknowledged he’s pressing and needs to be more patient.
“He wants to get out there and probably try to hit a home run at times where he probably needs to take what’s given,” running backs coach Danny Barrett said.“We talk about being patient and the game will come to him. I think that happened in the Jacksonville game, the most success he’s had running the football.
“We came out early — (he) wasn’t patient. Then he started being patient. We’ve got to get back to that, but also more opportunities for him. We do need more space. I’d be the first to say that. He would say that.”
Playing under a $10.2 million base salary this year, Johnson ranks 16th in the NFL with 392 rushing yards. The Texans rank 31st in the league in rushing offense, averaging 84.9 yards per game on the ground.
The Texans rarely use Duke Johnson to complement David Johnson. But the results are similar, no matter who gets the handoff. Duke Johnson has rushed for 54 yards on 18 carries, an average of 3.0 per carry.
David Johnson’s upright running style at 6-1, 224 pounds and his jump-cut moves haven’t been effective.
“I think David is more of a power runner, more straight up, down-the-field type of deal,” Barrett said. “Have to work with him on getting his pads downmore than anything else. And Duke, with just his style of running, he’s not as fast as David, but I think with his feet and the ability to make a guy miss in the hole, that’s where you’ll see the difference. He’ll press and cut and get behind the blocks maybe more because of the size than everything else.”
Because the Texans struggle to run the football, they have to try to strike a balance between having a pass-first offense and not allowing defenses to pin their ears back and come after Watson.
Watson has been sacked 22 times, sixth most in the NFL, despite the presence of Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Tunsil is the highest-graded pass protecting tackle in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus.
Kelly doesn’t want the defense to abandon the run and tee off on Watson.
“Yeah, obviously, that’s a concern,” Kelly said. “We want to make sure we’re balanced. The more the defense has to defend is going to help us be successful. Our guys are doing a good job pass protecting. It’s not like, as people say, the Huns are coming over the wall.
“We’ve got to continue to do a good job of grinding it out and, as a coaching staff over the next couple days, figuring out what we have to do and what schemes we need to run to get the success we want in the running game.”