First-read throws were pretty easy for Deshaun Watson in his initial three seasons with the Houston Texans: just look for DeAndre Hopkins.
According to Pro Football Focus, Watson had the fifth-highest passer rating on first-read throws from 2018-19 at 101.4. In the football scouting firm’s analytics, that translated to an 86.6 grade, the 10th-best in their model among qualifiers.
Both of those figures could decrease without Hopkins, who is now with the Arizona Cardinals.
Or it may not. When listing the biggest drop offs between first-read throws and other throws, PFF did not have Watson among the top-10. Whereas Jared Goff and Philip Rivers were on both lists, Watson was not, which suggests that there isn’t that big of a drop off between the first read and the rest of the progression.
That factor may have been what coach and general manager Bill O’Brien is basing the 2020 offense around, and that is what second-year offensive coordinator Tim Kelly is expected to take advantage of.
“We’ve got a great quarterback, a guy who’s going to be able to distribute the ball and again get the ball to the guys that are winning, and we’ve got guys who have won consistently for a long time scattered throughout that room,” Kelly told reporters on May 20.
Instead of a three-time All-Pro in Hopkins, Watson will have a receiving corps of Brandin Cooks, Randall Cobb, Will Fuller, Kenny Stills, Keke Coutee, DeAndre Carter, and Steven Mitchell, who Kelly says have all “made some big plays” for the Texans in their careers.
“Those are guys that have produced and that are coming in with a great mindset and with a chip on their shoulder and are working hard every day to make sure they’re on the same page with the coaching staff and making sure they’re on the same page with Deshaun,” said Kelly.
The formidable part of the new Texans offense is that Watson will be encouraged to go through his entire reads and find the winning matchups, not just key in on one dominant receiver.