Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson is a tremendous fantasy football asset, but Pro Football Focus won’t put him in the top category for quarterbacks.
According to Jeff Ratcliffe of Pro Football Focus, Watson is in the second tier along with Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck.
If there’s anyone who can challenge [Patrick] Mahomes for the No. 1 spot this year, it’s these two. Watson is coming off a fourth-place finish in 2018 and offers an enormous ceiling thanks to his ability as a runner. Luck put the shoulder injury in the rearview mirror last year and was extremely consistent with 11 top-10 fantasy finishes over the final 13 games of the season. He also got some nice upgrades in his wide receiver corps with the additions of Parris Campbell and Devin Funchess.
One element that it outside of Watson’s control is the health of his receiving corps. No. 2 receiver Will Fuller tore his ACL during Week 8, and rookie wideout Keke Coutee played in six games as chronic hamstring injuries plagued him all season. As a result, Watson’s only reliable and dynamic target was All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins. Though the Texans still managed to produce a nine-game winning streak amid those injuries to the receiving corps, it had an effect on Watson’s fantasy numbers.
In the top tier was Mahomes all by his lonesome. The Kansas City Chiefs signal caller threw for 50 touchdowns against 12 interceptions, and added another two touchdowns on the ground. It is conceivable that Watson could come close to that half-century mark in touchdowns. However, the best way for Watson to take any top spot in quarterback comparisons is for him to do his part and let regression to the mean across the NFL do its part. Will Mahomes chuck 50 touchdowns again in consecutive seasons? Probably not, and at that point, all Watson has to do is be better than the quarterbacks in 2019, not Mahomes from 2018.
