What It’s Like To Meet Deshaun Watson Deshaun Watson struts | Forum

His demeanor is not that of a boisterous http://www.houstontexansteamonline.com/christian-covington-jersey , awe-inspiring figure. Rather, he is calm and poised. He walks casually into the center of the crowd, surrounded by photographers and children alike waiting to get a glimpse of the potential hero of Houston Texans football. You would never know what Watson was feeling. Whether it’s a 12 year old with an $800 phone trying to take a selfie or a reporter asking monotonous questions, Deshaun Watson’s demeanor is unchanged. He is not Philip Rivers, holding heated media press conferences. He’s not Cam Newton, with flashy clothes and high self-praise. He’s not Aaron Rodgers, whose focus and intensity affect the whole room. He’s not Russell Wilson, seemingly born to be in front of the camera. Instead, Deshaun Watson is the single most congenial person I have ever met. He did not fill the room with his presence despite every camera and eyeball being on him. He passed through the approximately 100 kids participating in several football drills like a kid at recess. With an entire city’s expectations on his shoulders and dozens of kids vying for his attention, Watson is unfazed. He comes into my view and my eyes unconsciously dart down to look at his knees. Two zipper-looking scars lace his knee caps. I, as well as the rest of the NFL, were devastated to see Watson’s season come to an end last November. As a sufferer of a torn ACL myself, I can offer a layman's opinion about how Watson’s knee looked. I may be wrong, as I was not able to get a full look, but Deshaun’s knees look almost identical in size and muscle mass. That’s a good sign for his recovery trajectory. When it comes to the Texans’ present and future quarterback, I had no compunction about at examining his knee’s external appearance for myself.When interviewing Watson, I found that he’s so soft-spoken you can be right in front of him without comprehending what he said. Maybe it was the screaming kids and loud music in the background (or perhaps it was my own nervousness), but it was almost impossible to decipher what Watson was saying. The first thought that came to mind was, “How in the hell was he able to call plays and command a huddle in a stadium like Seattle at the age of 22?” After being in the same room as him, you can see how he does it.He never gets too high or too low - on or off the field. Watson’s level-headedness is other worldly. The Texans have had their fair share of quarterbacks in the last four years. From guys who sleep through their alarms to those who never seemed to understand why everyone thought they weren’t any good, this city and this team deserve more. Will Deshaun Watson be the kiss that breaks the curse? I hope so.After the initial scrum, Mike Bullock and I were able to get face to face with Watson for our own interview. Battle Red Blog and Deshaun Watson. I felt like Squints from “The Sandlot” starring at Wendy Peffercorn. All my hopes and dreams were wrapped up in a single person. Leaning against a wall padding with one leg kicked up, Watson stood there as we spit questions at him about his plans after minicamp, his records, his relationship with DeAndre Hopkins http://www.houstontexansteamonline.com/kareem-jackson-jersey , and more.Watson fielded the questions with a relaxed confidence. Not cocky or underwhelming, but he has an air about him that’s strikingly different that anyone I have ever met. I had to pull out my high school vocabulary book to find the right word; the common tongue does not do Watson justice.Deshaun Watson is imperturbable.Once the interview had concluded, I trailed Watson on his way out of the facility and watched as he repeatedly stopped to take picture after picture with kids despite his representatives saying he had to go. DW4 clearly enjoyed talking to the kids (much more than the reporters), and he was clearly willing to do more that what was asked of him.Everything Watson said went back to his hard work and preparation. Not the redundant Bill O’Brien taught phrases, but his actual habits and mindset. When answering questions about his future, a lot of what Watson said would flow into the past tense. For example, his preparation and relationship with DeAndre Hopkins in the coming season will come from the time spent in the film room and in practice. For a player who has played only seven NFL football games, Watson’s preparation and maturity were astounding.In all honesty, I was damn nervous to interview Watson. All the advice I was given told me to“make it seem like a conversation, make it natural.”As I asked question after question, I realized I wasn’t nervous and that things were going pretty well, I became more confident and less worried about hitting every word in my prepared questions. The confidence Watson exudes made things easy for me.For Watson, this was like eating breakfast, routine as could be. I could feel how the magnitude of the game doesn’t affect Deshaun Watson or his mentality. That sereneness rubs off on others, making them feel more confident. Theodore Roosevelt would be proud—Deshaun Watson spoke softly and carried a big stick.Many in the media are skeptical of Watson’s future, calling him the next RGIII or saying the Texans need to be on the lookout for other QB options in the near future. A NFL player without either ACL...how will he survive? I can tell you that the impression Deshaun Watson made on me in the few minutes I was in his presence gives me all the confidence in the world that he will be a rock star for the Texans.Hair of the Dog: Texans-Cowboys (Careful Where You Step; There’s Dog Mines All Through The Two Yard Line) Is it ever wrong to be ungrateful for a win?Because this win feels kind of hollow, all things being equal.It’s great that the Texans beat the Cows 19-16, it’s great that we’re only one game back in the AFC South title fight, it’s just great to get a win period.But something isn’t sitting right about it.The Texans should’ve scored more than 19 points.A lot more.They got to within the five yard line five (5!) times and came away with a touchdown exactly once.The rest were either field goals or a turnover on downs.The offense was by no means bad last night.If it were, the Texans wouldn’t have even sniffed the red zone, as has happened in the past.But a lot of their red zone (read:within the five yard line in this case) woes can be boiled down to playcalling.Our Brain Genius O’Brien somehow managed to dial up exactly the dumbest possible play at every turn.In a twisted way it’s quite breathtaking, like managing to dodge every single raindrop in a storm except backwards.And that’s not even taking into account the number of times Brain O’Brien tried to kill Deshaun Watson.To be fair, Watson displayed some lemming tendencies as well, but Brain should know better by now than to call some of these plays.He’s even said, as recently as halftime LAST NIGHT that he had to do a better job of playcalling.On a side note:Can we please start a running tally on how many times he has said that up to this point and beyond?Because it’s reached Kubiakish “it’s on me” levels of irritating.That the Texans were not up by at least two scores can be attributed directly to the playcalling and to the fact that after four-plus years Brain O’Brien has not learned a [kittening] thing about how to coach an NFL team.That it required overtime and a return to the ever-present All-Field-Goal-Offense (which I invented as a joke but O’Brien seems to have taken literally) to eke out a win is beyond frustrating; and is a fundamental problem to the future of the Houston Texans.And if he somehow managed to get Deshaun Watson hurt on his designed run plays Womens Julien Davenport Jersey , may Durga have mercy on his soul because the people of Houston will not.But it’s a win.A win over the Cows.I’ll take it, but I’ll always wonder what would have happened with a better red zone performance.Anyway, let’s get to the game itself.As always, in finest Hair of the Dog tradition, all swear words have been replaced with the word [kitten] to make this safe to read at work.You’re welcome.Pre-Game Thoughts:MDCCapt RonUTMDC (to UT)BFDWestonUTLukeFirst Quarter:UTMDCUTMDC (to UT)Luke (to UT)Texans force Cows to settle for field goal, trail 3-0.LukeMDCDiehard ChrisUTMDC (to UT)Fairbairn shanks field goal, Texans still behind 3-0.UTMDCLukeBFDUTVegaBFDMDCLuke (to BFD)Cows kick another field goal, lead 6-0.UTWestonLukeMDCUTVegaMDCUT (to Vega)Second Quarter:WestonJeremyMDCUTLukeWatson the quick toss to Coutee Pie and the Texans take the lead 7-6.JeremyMDCWestonKenneth L.JeremyMDC (to Kenneth)UT (to Jeremy)LukeTexans force a stop on third down, nullified by a Clowney offsides penalty.UTMDCUTCapt RonUTKenneth L. (to UT)Luke (to UT)UTCapt RonWestonDiehard ChrisCapt RonUTLukeKenneth L.JeremyBrain O’Brien wimps out and kicks calls for a field goal.Texans lead 10-6.UTCapt RonUT (to Capt Ron)LukeMDCUTCapt RonMDC (to UT)UTTimVegaUTMDCVegaBFDLukeBFDTexans go for it on fourth and goal at the one yard line and come up short.UT (to BFD)MDCHalftime Reactions:MDCWestonCapt RonMDCLukeUTMDCCapt RonUTBFDUTMDC (to UT)UT Capt RonUTThird Quarter:LukeNuk fumbles the ball, Cows recover.UTAw [kitten].BFDMDCTavon Austin catch is ruled incomplete, Cows challenge.MDCVega (to UT)MDCCall stands, Cows lose timeout.Texans challenge a first down, because reasons.UTVegaMDCUTLukeMDCCapt RonCall is overturned, is ruled second and one at the six rather than first and 10 at the five.Quite a relief.Cows score on obvious TD anyway.Great job, Brain.Cows lead 13-10.UTBFDMDCUT (to MDC)Capt RonVegaMDCUTMDCVegaUTMDCCapt RonJustin Reid intercepts Dak Prescott. Call stands after review.MDCCapt RonWestonUTCapt RonMDCVegaWestonCapt RonLukeUTLukeCapt Ron (to UT)UT (to Luke)Capt RonTexans tie the game again, 13-13.UTWestonBFDCapt RonFourth Quarter:VegaUTBFDIt wasn’t.Capt RonMDCWestonCapt RonUTMDCCapt RonBFDUT (to BFD)MDC (to BFD)Weston (to BFD)We know you have bad taste, Big Matt.Capt RonWestonVegaUTBFDVegaMDCUTCapt RonTexans take the lead on, you guessed it, another field goal.Lead 16-13.UTMDCBFDVegaUTMDCCapt RonCows tie the game at 16-16.MDCVegaUT (to Vega)Capt RonMDC (to Vega)WestonMDCKenneth L. (to MDC)WestonMDCUTMDC (to UT)Kenneth L. (to UT)MDCBFD (to UT)VegaUTWestonVega (to Weston)Overtime:VegaWestonKenneth L.MDCVegaUTWestonBFDCapt RonVegaDeAndre Hopkins runs to the Cows’ 27 yard line after making what appeared to be 22 spin moves to get there.VegaUTCapt RonLukeCapt RonUT (to Capt Ron)Kenneth L.MDCField goal is good, Texans win through simple purity of field goals 19-16.VegaUTCapt RonUTHey!Let’s give out some game balls!Offense - DeAndre Hopkins with the run that set up the game winning field goal (lol, the idea of a game winning touchdown).Defense - Justin Reid with his first interception of his career, hopefully the first of many.Special Teams - Ka’imi Fairbairn because glory to all field goal offense.What do you think, BRB faithful?Got someone else you’d rather give the game ball to?Got a better nickname for Keke Coutee than Pie?Want to try to rename the run that Hopkins went on in overtime?We’re all ears.Let us know in the comments!