Deshaun Watson can make huge Houston Texans news by battling for NFL MVP in 2020.
The Houston Texans have a very special player in quarterback Deshaun Watson. In what will be his fourth season, Watson is poised to really let loose on the NFL, and this year he’ll prove he’s capable of winning the Most Valuable Player award.
Sure, Watson won’t have his All-Pro wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, and yes, sometimes he holds on to the football a little too long at times. Also, the play calling has been questionable during his three years with the franchise, but all of that was learning and getting ready for season four, where this is the year Deshaun Watson is going to become an even stronger player than the talent he’s already shown on the football field.
Watson enters the 2020 NFL season as a two-time Pro Bowl selection (2018 and 2019), is a four-time NFL Player of the Week (three times last season) and has been voted 50th and 51st in the NFL Top 100 the past two years.
Houston Texans News: Deshaun Watson becoming a veteran QB
The 24-year old Deshaun Watson has played in 38 regular-season games and three playoff games in his career, where he has a 1-2 record, but did gain his first playoff win this past season when he Texans defeated the Buffalo Bills, 22-19.
In Watson’s three-year career, he’s made Texans news headlines by collecting eight fourth-quarter comeback wins, with five of those coming last season. Each year, Watson seems to add more and more to his game, and if more of that improvement comes this season, the rest of the league had better be on notice.
Watson won’t have his All-Pro receiver Hopkins for the first time in his career, but having Brandin Cooks, Will Fuller, Kenny Stills and Randall Cobb as passing targets, not to mention the tight ends and running backs on the roster, Watson and the Texans could really surprise teams in 2020 because currently they are under the radar and not being projected to make the playoffs.
Next are three reasons why Deshaun Watson can be the 2020 NFL MVP, and if that happens that means most likely the Texans will be winning the AFC South for a third straight season, and once again, returning to the playoffs.
3. Deshaun Watson having David Johnson as a teammate
Losing Carlos Hyde after one season on the roster doesn’t hurt as much with David Johnson on the roster in 2020. The price it took to gain Johnson was a bit steep, but with that being the past, Watson and the Texans must look toward the future.
David Johnson being the top option at running back could prove to be a big difference maker in 2020 because of the fact if Johnson can not only be a 1,000-yard rusher in 2020 (which is very possible), but also make noise with his pass-catching talent, Watson could really take another step in his quarterback progression.
Watson has had to make many outstanding plays with his running abilities since joining the Texans in 2017, and while those big plays have been very helpful for the Texans in terms of wins and losses, they have had to take a toll on his body too. Now with the help of David Johnson, Watson can become a more complete quarterback and cut down on some of the big hits he’ll take in 2020.
This season, Watson will still make big plays while breaking away from the pressure put on him by the opposition, but maybe instead of running for 10 yards and taking a hit, he can find the likes of Johnson open for the same amount of yardage, which will add to his overall passing totals.
In 2019, Watson passed for nearly 4,000 yards (3,852), and this season it is easy to predict — even without DeAndre Hopkins — that Deshaun Watson can pass for 4,000 yards, as that will have to be the case if he wants to be selected as the MVP.
2. Having a more improved offensive line
It has been no secret since Deshaun Watson has joined the NFL and the Houston Texans that they’ve not been the best as an offensive line. Last season, that began to change as he went from being sacked 62 times in 2018 (his second season) to 44 times in 2019. Some of the sacks were the fault of Watson as he was trying to make a play, but other times the offensive line wasn’t up to the level it needed to be, either.
In 2020, the offensive line is more seasoned with both Tytus Howard and Max Scharping entering their second season, and franchise left tackle Laremy Tunsil will be in a full training camp with the Texans.
Sure, there are still questions at other spots in the offensive line, but the two tackle spots seem to be in good hands. If the unit can cut back on the pressure that gets near Watson in 2020, that will be a huge difference maker for the soon-to-be fourth-year starting quarterback.
If Watson is given the proper amount of time in the backfield as his receivers do what is needed to get open, then there will be no way the Texans finish third in the AFC South as that seems to be where they are being predicted.
Deshaun Watson and the Texans should be used to being the underdogs in the offseason, but if the offensive line keeps improving, that will allow for Watson to not be under as much pressure, and he could get rid of the football without being on the run.
1. The wide variety of wide receivers on the roster
When it comes to Deshaun Watson having a chance to be the 2020 NFL Most Valuable Player, not only will his overall improvement be a must, but this year he’ll have to prove it without DeAndre Hopkins to throw the football to.
First things first, and that is none of the current Texans wide receivers are at the same level as Hopkins is, but that is fine. What is most important about the this current group of wide receivers, which includes a top four of Kenny Stills, Brandin Cooks, Randall Cobb and Will Fuller, is they stay healthy and on the field in 2020.
If those players get hurt, the Texans season would be tough to watch, and with recent injury history being questionable for some, especially Fuller, well, Watson would have no shot at leading the Texans to a win.
The NFL MVP award is a team effort, and for Deshaun Watson to win this award, he will need Fuller and Cooks on the field at all times like Hopkins has been in the past when he was a member of the Texans. If those two can get open and let Watson find them in their routes, the Texans will be a dangerous team.
Fuller has had his moments each season he’s been on the field, and Cooks has been a 1,000-yard receiver in the past, but with them being the top focal point of this offense when it comes to receivers, Watson will be able to find them if they can get open.
Watson will make his wide receivers better because of his talents at quarterback, and teams are always going to have to watch his abilities to run with the football. With the four wide receivers he’s going to be able to make plays with — even without his past All-Pro target — plus having Tim Kelly calling plays this season in his role as the offensive coordinator, he’s going to be the difference maker for the Texans.
Watson can become an even more impactful player this season, giving him an excellent shot to be the 2020 NFL MVP, and if that happens, good things will be coming to the Texans, too.