The NFL is a brotherhood, and the loyalties are often times defined by representation.
When the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens square off Sunday at 12:00 p.m. CT at M&T Bank Stadium, quarterback Deshaun Watson will be directly going against an All-Pro safety who has supported him his career in Earl Thomas.
Both Thomas and Watson share the same agent, David Mulugheta, and it is through the coterie that Thomas has long conveyed his support in the former 2017 first-round pick from Clemson.
“I mean, Earl called me Monday,” Watson told reporters Wednesday. “He FaceTimed me Monday, and I told him I was in meetings. Like, ‘I’m preparing right now to play against you.’ But yeah, it’s a family, especially in the group of circle and my agent and the clients that he has.”
Another example of the adversarial fraternity was when Los Angeles Rams cornerback Jalen Ramsey was with the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2016-19, another Mulugheta client, who went against Watson in four games over that span.
Ultimately, the driving force is competition, regardless of which side one is playing on.
Said Watson: “We have family ties, and we’re very supportive of one another and when we play against each other, we compete. Like I played against Jalen, we compete, but at the same time, we show love and we respect each other.”
During the limited interaction Watson had with Thomas, the former Seattle Seahawks safety told the Pro Bowl quarterback that he had a message he wanted to give him.
“He said he was going to hit me up later this week,” Watson said. “It was probably about something else, but he’s definitely — it’s pretty cool to have a guy like that to support you and be like a big brother.”
Texans fans are hoping “little brother” gets the win and both sides leave Week 11 with an equitable 7-3 record apiece as Houston seeks its first ever first-round bye in franchise history.