Houston Texans coach and general manager Bill O’Brien wants to build a roster comprised of layers of productive players. However, there are still two players on the roster who are among the best in the NFL at their respective positions.
According to Pro Football Focus, the Texans have two of the best in the game in defensive end J.J. Watt and quarterback Deshaun Watson, who claimed spots on their top 50 list.
The most remarkable spot is the 13th place that Watt takes. The three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year played in just eight games in 2019, but part of what helped him keep such a lofty spot was his work in 2018 when he collected 16.0 sacks and a league-leading seven forced fumbles.
J.J. Watt had a four-season stretch in his career that rivaled Aaron Donald’s before injuries started to bite deep and derail things, but Watt has still shown glimpses of that dominance since those setbacks. In 2018, he played a full year and earned a PFF grade above 90.0. He was on track to accomplish that feat again last season before a torn pectoral muscle ended his regular season, and his return in the playoffs wasn’t quite at the same level. At his best, Watt is still a dominant force in the league, and the only question about that is his health, rather than his level of play.
Sam Monson wrote that Watson’s play, “looks like that of Patrick Mahomes for the majority of the time, only Watson has far less help.” Just in the reflection of the list, it is true given that there were at least five Kansas City Chiefs players on the list, including Mahomes.
The author claims there is a “small subset of below-average play” that keeps him looking up to Mahomes rather than being true peers. The small subset will either expand or atrophy now that O’Brien has taken the best receiver in the game away from Watson and surrounded his franchise quarterback with more skill position pieces. For the first time since Houston drafted him in the first round in 2017, Watson will have all five starters returning on the offensive line, which is a very underrated boon.
If the Texans would have kept receiver DeAndre Hopkins instead of trading him to the Arizona Cardinals for running back David Johnson, then Houston would have three players on the list. The three-time All-Pro landed at No. 9 overall.