Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson still has a ways to go if he is to be a complete QB in the NFL.
So says Hall of Fame quarterback and NFL Network analyst Kurt Warner, who joined Radio.com’s “Baldy’s Breakdowns” with Brian Baldinger and Jason Myrtetus.
Myrtetus asked who were some young quarterbacks that could make the jump in 2020 into the NFL’s upper echelon, such as the Arizona Cardinals’ Kyler Murray and the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson.
“I think we’ve got some good, young, playmaking quarterbacks in guys that you mentioned,” Warner said. “And there’s a bunch of them out there. The question to me is who can develop and grow their game to the point where they’re not just a playmaking quarterback, but they’re a complete quarterback.”
Warner talked about how Murray had a statistically good year with the 5-10-1 Cardinals, throwing for 3,722 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. However, the 2019 first-round pick from Oklahoma, “didn’t even know what he was doing half the time,” according to Warner.
The former Super Bowl XXXIV MVP then segued into talking about Watson, a two-time Pro Bowler.
“Deshaun Watson’s another guy that, impressive, he’s a leader,” said Warner. “He’s a playmaker, but hasn’t really learned how to play the game yet.”
Watson collected 3,852 yards, 26 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in 2019. The former 2017 first-round pick from Clemson also rushed for seven touchdowns and even caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from receiver DeAndre Hopkins in Week 13 versus the New England Patriots.
However, Warner still sees Watson in the same stratosphere as the Philadelphia Eagles’ Carson Wentz and the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott.
Said Warner: “They’ve shown glimpses and times where they’ve been really good and they have shown they can win at this level, but just winning is different than being a championship quarterback.
“Being a championship quarterback is the ability to be able to win in different ways, and specifically to me being able to win inside the pocket when a team forces you to win inside the pocket; to make decisions, to make reads, to make layups that you’re supposed to make.”
Interestingly, Watson had the highest Pro Football Focus grade on passes 20-plus yards downfield when he had a clean pocket.
Deshaun Watson was the only quarterback to grade higher on passes 20+ yards downfield from a clean pocket than Tom Brady in 2019 đź‘€ https://t.co/Z1OxkKhVQZ
— PFF NE Patriots (@PFF_Patriots) January 12, 2020
The old adage is that “winning cures all.” If Watson is part of a Texans team that breaks into the NFL’s final four or further, suddenly, he will appear to be more of a complete quarterback than he already is.