When the Houston Texans used a first-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft on quarterback Deshaun Watson, it seemed like they had found their franchise quarterback of the future. However, Texans head coach Bill O’Brien has never given a rookie quarterback any kind of chance to win the starting job in the past so it is no surprise that general manager Rick Smith said that Watson would have to win the starting job from Tom Savage in the 2017 NFL preseason. ESPN spoke to Watson and he said that he has no problem with that decision at all.
Deshaun Watson’s pedigree
Deshaun Watson came to the Houston Texans after a very successful college career. Watson led the Clemson Tigers to a National Championship by beating the Alabama Crimson Tide and turned the university into a major powerhouse. His head coach at Clemson, Dab Sweeney was so impressed with his quarterback that he openly stated that any team that drafted Watson was getting the NFL equivalent of Michael Jordan.
In his sophomore and junior year at Clemson, Deshaun Watson eclipsed 4,000 yards both seasons while throwing 76 touchdowns and 30 interceptions. The yardage and touchdown numbers are great but he needs to work on that interception total in the NFL. Watson also ran for 1,105 yards in his sophomore season and lowered that total to only 629 yards the next year, meaning he can move but that isn’t something Houston Texans quarterbacks are asked to do much under Bill O’Brien.
Watson’s positive attitude coming into preseason
Deshaun Watson might have something to prove as well. The Chicago Bears chose Mitchell Trubisky with the second overall pick in the 2017 Nfl Draft and the Kansas City Chiefs traded up to choose Patrick Mahomes II with the 10th pick. That caused the Houston Texans to move up to grab Deshaun Watson with the 12th overall pick.
As the third quarterback chosen in the draft this year, Watson might want to prove that the teams who passed on him were wrong.
However, Deshaun Watson is not acting like he has a vendetta. Watson was asked about competing for the Houston Texans starting role against Tom Savage and says he is not focused on that. Deshaun said that he just wants to play his role, whatever the Texans decide that role is, and work to improve his game for the NFL.
The good news is that he won’t have long to serve as a backup.
Tom Savage has played with the Houston Texans since his rookie year in 2014. However, he only played in two games in his rookie year, never stepped on the field in his second year, and played in three games in 2016 before his season ended due to injury. Overall, his career quarterback rating is only 80.9. Deshaun Watson will be the Texans franchise quarterback but the question is when Bill O’Brien will make that decision.
