The Houston Texans boasted the NFL’s top-scoring offense last season when Deshaun Watson was lined up under center. Watson was on pace to throw 43 passing touchdowns, but an ACL tear back in October promptly ended his remarkable rookie campaign.
DeAndre Hopkins is confident Watson will pick up right where he left off, and that they will become the league’s best quarterback-receiver duo in 2018.
“Honestly, I feel like I set the standard high for myself and him, so I think we can be the best in the league,” Hopkins told John McClain of the Houston Chronicle during OTAs on Wednesday. “I think he can be the best quarterback. I know I can be the best wide receiver. That’s our mindset coming into the season.”
Watson is still not participating in 11-on-11 drills to protect his surgically repaired knee, but he is making excellent progress and should be cleared prior the start of the regular season. In the meantime, Hopkins has been impressed by how Watson is trying to progress mentally every day despite not being a full participant physically.
“I would say him studying off the field, just learning the system [and] not just coming out and making the plays that he can naturally do,” Hopkins said. “I would say studying defenses, being a student of the game. Just the conversations we have in between workouts and warming up. It’s constantly going over defenses, talking about what we can do to get better. I definitely see him wanting to be the best.”
The Texans plummeted to a 4-12 record last season, but with Watson, J.J. Watt and Whitney Mercilus set to return from injury, Houston has every reason to be optimistic moving forward.
Texas Pro Football Access 