Deshaun Watson

Derrick Deshaun Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson and led the team to a CFP championship game appearance in 2015 and a national championship win in 2016. He was selected by the Texans 12th overall in the 2017 NFL Draft. In 2018, his second year, Watson was named to his first career Pro Bowl.

Early years
Watson was born in Gainesville, Georgia on September 14, 1995, to Deann Watson and Don Richardson. He attended Gainesville High School, arriving there in the fall of 2010. He played for the Red Elephants football team. Gainesville head coach Bruce Miller had planned to start a rising junior to quarterback his spread offense, but Watson won the starting spot. He was the first freshman quarterback Coach Miller had ever started.

During his career, Watson set numerous state records, including total yards (17,134), total touchdowns (218), career passing yards (13,077), and career passing touchdowns (155). He rushed for 4,057 yards and 63 touchdowns. Watson excelled in his junior year, winning a state championship and earning accolades such as Junior All-American, 2014 Player to Watch, and 2014 Top 100 Recruit. During his sophomore and senior years, he led the Gainesville High School Football Team to the state semi-finals.

Watson received offers from numerous colleges before verbally committing to Clemson University on February 1, 2012, to play college football. He was ranked the number one quarterback recruit for the 2014 class by ESPN 300.

Freshman year
Watson enrolled at Clemson in January 2014. During his high school career, Watson had worn #4. At Clemson, that number had been retired after quarterback Steve Fuller graduated. However, Fuller allowed the number to come out of retirement so that Watson could wear it. He entered his true freshman season as the backup to starter Cole Stoudt, but still received extensive playing time. Through three games, he completed 29-of-41 passes for 479 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions, outperforming Stoudt. Watson was named the Tigers' starter on September 21. In Watson's first career start against the North Carolina Tar Heels, he set a school record with six touchdown passes and threw for 435 yards en route to a 50–35 victory.

On October 11, 2014, Watson broke a bone in his right hand in a game against the Louisville Cardinals. He left in the first quarter and was out for the game. As a result of the injury, he missed the games against Boston College, Syracuse, and Wake Forest. He returned for the game against Georgia Tech only to suffer an LCL strain, missing most of the game. During the following week in practice it was reported that Watson had tweaked his knee. He did not play against Georgia State the following week, but came back the following week to play against state rival South Carolina. After defeating the Gamecocks, it was revealed to the public that Watson had played the game with a torn ACL. He underwent surgery on his left knee to repair his ACL the Friday before Clemson's bowl game against Oklahoma.

Sophomore year
In 2015, Watson led Clemson to an undefeated 12–0 regular season and a #1 ranking in the polls. After the regular season, the Tigers qualified for the ACC Championship Game, facing off against #10 North Carolina. Watson threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns, and ran for 131 yards and two touchdowns in the game, to lead the Tigers to a 45–37 win over the Tar Heels, winning the ACC Championship for the first time since 2011. Watson was also named the ACC Championship Game MVP for his performance.

The Tigers were selected to participate in the 2016 College Football Playoff and were selected as the #1 seed. They faced off against the #4 seed Oklahoma Sooners in the Orange Bowl, one of the two College Football Playoff Semifinal games. Watson threw for 189 yards and a touchdown, and ran for 145 yards and a touchdown, as he led Clemson to a 37–17 victory over the Sooners. Watson was named the 2015 Orange Bowl Offensive MVP for his performance.

With the win, the Tigers advanced to the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship game against #2 Alabama Crimson Tide, where Clemson lost 45–40. Watson threw for 405 yards and four touchdowns in the game, and ran for another 73 yards on the ground in the losing effort. He surpassed the 4,000 yard passing mark for the season in this game. He set the record for most total yards in national championship game history, with 478 yards (405 passing / 73 rushing) against the nation's best defense. In addition to throwing for over 4,000 yards, he also rushed for over 1,000 yards to complete his true sophomore season. Watson was the first player ever to accomplish this feat in the history of college football.

For his accomplishments during the 2015 season, Watson was named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, the first time a Clemson player has been invited to the Heisman Trophy presentation. He finished third in the balloting after winner Derrick Henry, running back from Alabama, and Christian McCaffrey, running back from Stanford. Watson's third-place finish in Heisman voting is the best finish in Clemson football history. He won the Davey O'Brien Award, which is awarded annually to the best college quarterback. He was also named the 2015 ACC Player of the Year and ACC Offensive Player of the Year.

Junior year


Watson started his junior season off positively with 248 passing yards, one touchdown, and one interception in a narrow 19–13 victory over the Auburn Tigers. On October 1, against Louisville, Watson finished with 306 passing yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions in the 42–36 victory. Watson finished with 378 passing yards and two touchdowns against Florida State on October 29, 2016, rallying to a 37–34 win. Against Syracuse on November 5, 2016, he had 169 passing yards with two touchdowns, but left the game with an apparent shoulder injury. On November 26, against South Carolina, he passed for 347 yards, six touchdowns, and one interception in the 56–7 victory.

In the fall of 2016, Watson became the first player since Jason White in 2003–2004 to win the Davey O'Brien Award in back-to-back years. That year he was also selected as the winner of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award and was the first repeat winner of the Manning Award. For the second year in row, Watson was named one of five Heisman Trophy candidates, along with Michigan's Jabrill Peppers, Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield and Dede Westbrook, and Louisville's Lamar Jackson. He again came up short of winning, as Louisville's Lamar Jackson was awarded the Heisman Trophy for his efforts and performances throughout the 2016 season, finishing with nearly twice as many first place votes as Watson.

After defeating Ohio State 31–0 in the CFP semifinal in the Fiesta Bowl and receiving the offensive MVP award for his efforts, Clemson defeated No. 1 Alabama by a score of 35–31 in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship. Watson completed 36-of-56 passes for 420 yards and three touchdowns against the nation's top-ranked defense, including the last-second game-winning pass to wide receiver, Hunter Renfrow. He also rushed for 43 yards and a touchdown. This gave the Clemson Tigers program its second national championship in school history, ending a three-decade national championship drought. Watson was awarded the offensive MVP award for his performance during the national championship game.

On November 8, 2016, Watson, along with three other Clemson players, Wayne Gallman, Artavis Scott, and Mike Williams, declared for the NFL Draft. In December 2016, Watson graduated with a degree in Communication after three years at Clemson.

Statistics
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Professional career
Coming out of Clemson, Watson was projected to be a first round pick by the majority of scouts and analysts. He was ranked as the top quarterback available in the draft by Sports Illustrated, Pro Football Focus, and ESPN. He was ranked the second best quarterback by NFLDraftScout.com.

The Houston Texans drafted Watson in the first round (12th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft. The Texans acquired the pick from the Cleveland Browns, trading their 25th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft and their first round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Houston had already traded (then, Houston starting quarterback) Brock Osweiler to Cleveland for draft picks earlier that year in part of what was widely considered the first major "salary dump" of the NFL. Watson was the third quarterback taken in the draft, behind Mitchell Trubisky, who went second overall to the Chicago Bears, and Patrick Mahomes, who went tenth overall to the Kansas City Chiefs.

2017 season: Rookie year
On May 12, 2017, the Texans signed Watson to a four-year, $13.84 million contract featuring a $8.21 million signing bonus.

Watson made his first regular-season appearance on September 10, 2017, against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He entered the game after Tom Savage was benched at halftime. He played for the remainder of the game. In the third quarter, he threw his first NFL touchdown, a 4-yard pass to wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. He finished with 102 passing yards, a touchdown, and an interception, as the Texans lost by a score of 29–7.

Watson made his first career start on September 14, 2017, which was his 22nd birthday, during Thursday Night Football on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals. He finished with 125 passing yards, 67 rushing yards, and a 49-yard rushing touchdown as the Texans won 13–9. During Week 3 against the defending Super Bowl champion, the New England Patriots, Watson finished with 301 passing yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions while also rushing for 41 yards as the Texans lost 36–33. During Week 4 against the Tennessee Titans, he completed 25-of-34 passes for 283 yards, 4 touchdowns, and an interception while also rushing for 24 yards and a touchdown as the Texans won 57–14. His 5 total scores tied the NFL rookie touchdown record. He is also the first rookie to pass for at least four touchdowns and rush for one touchdown in a game since Hall of Famer Fran Tarkenton did so for the Minnesota Vikings in 1961. His performance in Week 4 earned him AFC Offensive Player of the Week. Watson followed up his Week 4 performance with another great outing, this time on Sunday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs. In the 42–34 loss, Watson finished 16-of-31 for 261 yards and 5 touchdown passes, tying an NFL rookie record for touchdown passes thrown in a single game. He also rushed for 31 yards and a 2-point conversion. During Week 6, Watson threw for 225 yards, 3 touchdowns, and an interception while also rushing for 23 yards as the Texans beat the Cleveland Browns by a score of 33–17. After a bye week, the Texans went on the road to face off the Seattle Seahawks. During that game, Watson posted his first career game with over 400 passing yards. He finished with 402 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, 3 interceptions, and 67 rushing yards as the Texans lost 41–38. Watson threw 16 touchdowns in the month of October, setting the NFL record for most touchdown passes by a rookie in a calendar month. He was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Month and the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month for October.

On November 2, Watson tore his ACL on a non-contact play during practice, prematurely ending his rookie season. In 7 games (6 starts) of his rookie year, Watson finished with 1,699 passing yards, 19 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions. He also rushed for 269 yards and 2 touchdowns. On November 8, Watson underwent successful surgery on his right knee to repair his ACL, and no further knee damage was reported. Watson was ranked 50th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.

2018 season
On September 9, 2018, against the New England Patriots in the season opener, Watson returned from injury and threw for 176 yards with a touchdown and an interception and rushed eight times for 40 yards as the Texans lost by a score of 20–27. During Week 2 against the Tennessee Titans, Watson passed for 310 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception while also rushing for 44 yards as the Texans lost by a score of 17–20. In Week 3, against the New York Giants, Watson passed for 385 passing yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in the 27–22 loss. He also rushed for 36 yards.

During Week 4 against the Indianapolis Colts, Watson had 375 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, and one interception to go along with 41 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown as the Texans won 37-34 in overtime. During Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys, he passed for 375 yards, one touchdown, and one interception as the Texans won 19–16 in overtime. In Week 6 against the Buffalo Bills, Watson passed for 177 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions as the Texans narrowly won 20–13. Playing through broken ribs and a partially collapsed lung, he took a 12-hour bus ride from Houston to Jacksonville because of fears about what the air pressure might do to his chest. He passed for 139 yards and a touchdown to lead the Texans to a Week 7 road win over the Jacksonville Jaguars by a score of 20–7. During a Week 8 42–23 victory over the Miami Dolphins, Watson completed 16-of-20 passes for five touchdowns, tying his career high for most touchdown passes in a game and did not throw an interception for the second week in a row. During Week 9 against the Denver Broncos, Watson had another great outing, finishing 17-of-24 for 213 yards and two touchdowns as the Texans narrowly won 19–17.

After a bye week, the Texans went on the road to face the Washington Redskins. Watson passed for 208 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions as the Texans narrowly won 23–21 to extend their winning streak to seven games. Watson bounced back in Week 12, throwing for 210 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 70 yards and a touchdown as the Texans beat the Titans by a score of 34–17. Watson continued his hot streak against the Cleveland Browns during Week 13. In that game, Watson passed for 224 yards and a touchdown as the Texans won by a score of 29–13. The next week, the Texans were dealt with their fourth loss on the season, by a score of 24–21, from division rival Indianapolis Colts, with Watson passing for 267 yards and a touchdown in the contest. In Week 15, the Texans beat the New York Jets on the road by a score of 29–22, with Watson providing 294 passing yards and two touchdowns. In the final road game of the season against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Texans narrowly lost, 32–30. Watson passed for 339 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 49 yards and two touchdowns. In the Week 17 regular-season finale, the Texans returned home and defeated the Jaguars by a score of 20–3 with Watson passing for 234 yards. In addition, he rushed for 66 yards and a touchdown in the AFC South-clinching victory.

Watson finished the regular season with a career-high 4,165 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, nine interceptions, 551 rushing yards, and five rushing touchdowns. He led the league in average time spent in the pocket and was second in average time before getting rid of the ball. This was a large contributing factor to Watson facing the most dropbacks under pressure (281) and tied for the fifth-most sacks in a single season in NFL history with 62.

Making his first postseason appearance in his career, Watson and the Texans hosted division-rival Indianapolis Colts in the Wild Card Round. In that game, Watson completed 29-of-49 passes for 235 yards as the Texans lost by a score of 21–7.

On January 21, 2019, Watson was named to his first Pro Bowl, replacing the Super Bowl bound Tom Brady. He was ranked 51st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2019.

Postseason
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NFL records

 * Most passing touchdowns in a single game by a rookie quarterback: 5 (tied with Ray Buivid, Matthew Stafford, and Jameis Winston)
 * Most passing touchdowns in a calendar month by a rookie quarterback: 16
 * Most passing touchdowns by a rookie quarterback in one half: 4 (tied with Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston) (Week 5, 2017)
 * First player in NFL history to pass for 400+ yards, throw 4+ TD passes, and rush for 50+ yards in a single game. (Week 8, 2017)
 * First player in NFL history with multiple 5 passing touchdown games within his first 2 seasons (2)
 * First player in NFL history to have 4,000+ passing yards, 25+ passing touchdowns, 500+ rushing yards, and 5 rushing touchdowns in a single season
 * First quarterback with back-to-back games with at least 375 passing yards and 35 rushing yards
 * Most passing touchdowns by a rookie in a 7-game span in NFL history: 19
 * Most passing touchdowns by a rookie in a 5-game span in NFL history: 18
 * Longest streak of games with 3 or more passing touchdowns by a rookie in NFL history (4)
 * Most games with at least 375 passing yards and 40 rushing yards in NFL history: 3 (tied with Steve Young)
 * First rookie with two games of 300+ passing yards and 40+ rushing yards in a season
 * First rookie to produce 5+ touchdowns in consecutive games

Texans franchise records

 * Most passing touchdowns in a single game by a rookie: 5 (October 8, 2017, vs. Kansas City Chiefs)
 * Most passing touchdowns in a season by a rookie: 19
 * Most consecutive games with a touchdown pass: 20
 * Most passing yards in a game by a rookie: 301
 * Highest passer rating in a season: 103.1
 * First rookie with 3+ touchdown passes in a game
 * First quarterback to score touchdowns (one passing, one rushing) in his first two games
 * First quarterback to record 300+ passing yards and 40+ rushing yards in a single game

Personal life
Watson is Christian and converted to the Southern Baptist Convention after coming to Houston. In 2006, when Watson was 11 years old, Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick Dunn donated a home to his family. It was donated through Dunn's charity Homes for the Holidays, who partnered with Habitat for Humanity. In 2017, Watson donated his first NFL game check to three cafeteria employees affected by Hurricane Harvey who work at the Houston Texans' NRG Stadium. The total amount donated was around $27,000.