Will Fuller has the potential to make many Houston Texans news headlines this season.
There is an opportunity in front of Houston Texans wide receiver Will Fuller for the 2020 NFL season. If he’s able to make the most of that opportunity, well, he’s going to make a lot of the Texans news in 2020.
We all know about DeAndre Hopkins and his greatness being gone, and we all know the Texans news headlines that trade has made since March. Now it is time to look to the present, and Will Fuller is a part of current group of Texans wide receivers that have to be greater than what Hopkins was, and Fuller will be looked upon more now that at any other previous point in his career.
Looking at the “Big 4” wide receivers on the Texans, they are Fuller, Brandin Cooks, Kenny Stills and Randall Cobb. Each player brings something different to the Texans, and for Fuller his speed and big-play ability is at the top of the list in what he can provide to Houston’s offense.
Will Fuller in his first four seasons has never caught for 700 or more yards in a season, and he’s never had a 50-catch season either. Those numbers aren’t low because of his talent level, because Fuller is one of the more talented players in the entire NFL. Those numbers aren’t low because of playing time, because Fuller, when on the roster, gains plenty of playing time.
The issue with Fuller and his four previous NFL season is his health. Fuller has all of the talent in the world to lead the wide receivers on the Texans roster, but the news for this Texans receiver is he’s hurt more than he is on the field.
When at the top of his game and not injured, Will Fuller will make plenty of Texans news headlines. Two seasons ago, Fuller made one of the best plays of his his career, a 73-yard touchdown reception against the Miami Dolphins. That great play was his last for that season, as he tore his ACL on the touchdown catch.
Just this past season, Fuller played in Just 11 games, which he had a career-high 49 receptions for a career-high 670 yards and three touchdowns. He averaged 13.7 yards per game in 2019 while playing alongside Hopkins, but now, if healthy, Will Fuller has a real chance to double those numbers, only if he can stay on the football field.
Next are “3 Bold Predictions” for Fuller, as the wide receiver is sure to makes plenty of Texans news headlines in 2020.
Texans News: 3. Will Fuller will play in at least 14 games in 2020
This prediction isn’t bold enough to say Will Fuller will play in all 16 games this regular season, but hopefully most of the bad luck and misfortune when it comes to his health is all washed away, and this is a new start for Fuller in 2020.
Fuller — who last played 14 games in a season his rookie season — will be needed more than ever in 2020, as will his teammate Brandin Cooks, because they are going to be the top two wide receivers on the roster for quarterback Deshaun Watson. This past season Fuller had thigh hamstring strain (Grade 2) where he missed three games, and later he had another thigh hamstring strain (Grade 1).
In late December, Fuller has a sports hernia suffered in Week 16, causing him to miss Week 17 and the first playoff game against the Buffalo Bills, all according to Sports Injury Predictor.
For the Texans to have a season to remember and one where they prove all the doubters wrong, Fuller must be on the field more often than not. If he isn’t, that means the coverage will only be tougher on his teammates, plus Watson will won’t have his best overall wide receiver on the field, and that can’t happen after the Texans already traded DeAndre Hopkins.
Texans News: 2. Will Fuller will have 10-plus TDs
Think about how much better numbers Will Fuller would currently have if he had been able to stay on the field for most of his career. In his four seasons with the Houston Texans, Fuller has missed 22 regular-season games, as her missed two his rookie season, six in year two, nine games in his third season, and last year Fuller missed five regular games.
Missing those games is no fault to Will Fuller because injuries happen in the NFL, and it just seems since joining the league, especially after his rookie season, injuries that have cost him games have started to pile up.
That said, all of that is in the past, and this is going to stay positive, because Fuller does have the talent and ability to catch at least 10 touchdown passes in 2020. This is the season where Fuller can really make a name for himself, and finish what he’s started in past seasons.
As a rookie in 2016, Fuller was targeted 92 times, where he finished with 47 receptions and two touchdowns. That isn’t too bad for a rookie who played in 14 games. The next season, in 2017, the Texans news made by Fuller included 50 targets for 28 receptions and seven touchdowns in 10 games played.
In ’18, Fuller finished with 45 targets, 32 receptions and four touchdowns, as the ACL injury held him to just seven games. In ’19, Fuller totaled 71 targets for 49 receptions and three touchdowns, as he played in 11 games.
Imagine if Fuller had the chance to play in more games and possibly be the lead target for Deshaun Watson. That chance is here now, and it will be up to Fuller to do so and take advantage of more opportunities headed his way.
Texans News: 1. Get ready for a 1,000-yard season
If the first two bold predictions occur for Will Fuller where he can stay healthy and make the double-digit touchdown receptions, there is no doubt the third prediction is obtainable as well for the wide receiver.
Granted, Fuller will be sharing receptions with some talented wide receivers, but if Fuller plays in at least 14 games he’ll most definitely catch for 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in his career.
It is going to be different for the Texans wide receivers this season, as two of them have never taken a snap for the franchise, while Fuller and Stills have not been on the Texans without DeAndre Hopkins taking the top defender off them. This year, who knows? It could be Fuller who draws the top defender, or it could be Brandin Cooks, but both have the talent to be 1,000-yard receivers.
Having Deshaun Watson as the starting quarterback will help Fuller become the player he’s capable of, but more than anything, if he stays on the field this season, he’ll finish what he starts and catch for at least 1,000 yards, as in the past he’s been on pace to do so before injuries happened.