Deshaun Watson has been free from Bill O’Brien, and he’s back

The Texans have found their All-Pro quarterback once more post O’Brien era in Deshaun Watson.

If there’s anyone ready to celebrate a win come Sunday evening, Deshaun Watson should be in the front of the line.

Sure, a 30-14 victory against the struggling Jacksonville Jaguars isn’t going to wow the critics, but one look at the stat line answers the question of how the Houston Texans would look without Bill O’Brien calling the shots.

Yep, Watson is back in the driver’s seat, so best believe he’s going full speed to the top of the AFC South.

The Texans (1-4), put together an offensive performance that O’Brien envisioned when the former head coach/general manager traded away All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins. Perhaps a bit awkward since the Texans fired O’Brien following Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings. With 73-year-old Romeo Crennel calling the shots, Houston came out swinging, fighting for respect, and the chance to flip the script.

If this is the Watson fans become accustomed to seeing, the rewrite will be sweeter than ever.

“I saw the fight during the course of the game,” Crennel said, Sunday. “I didn’t see anybody going to the tank when things went wrong. They said, ‘let’s go, let’s pick it up,’ and then boom. And that’s what they did. They picked it up and they fought all the way to the end.”

Houston tallied a season-high with 486 total yards of offense in front of roughly 13,000 fans. In near every area, the Texans’ offense looked improved, as if a weight had been lifted off their shoulders.

David Johnson, the focal point of the Hopkins’ trade, picked up his best game on the year, running for 96 yards and averaging 5.6 yards per run. The offensive line, which has allowed a league-high 16 sacks, only gave up one to the Jaguars’ front seven.

The real storyline is on Watson, who finally was making $160 million plays on offense. Yes, he did throw two interceptions on the day but plays like that downfield would have never been on an O’Brien call sheet. And if his ability to extend plays deep weren’t enough to see his immediate progression, his stat line certainly does.

The 25-year-old finished with a season-high 359 passing yards to go along with three scores. That’s not also including a season-best in completion percentage (71.4%), yards per pass (10.3) and QBR rating (77.8). More importantly, Watson looked comfortable for the first time all season under center without his go-to target on the outside.

Maybe O’Brien was on to something when trading for Brandin Cooks. Watson heavily relied on the speedster for connections against a depleted Jacksonville secondary. Eight catches for 161 yards and a touchdown later, Cooks certainly proved his worth for Houston’s offense on the outside.

Will Fuller, the revolving door of uncertainty at receiver, was certain his skills were valuable. His 19-yard touchdown all but sealed the deal in the fourth quarter to go along with 58 total yards. Even Darren Fells made the most of his targets, scoring a 44-yard touchdown and closing out with 57 yards on the day.

The success comes from behind Watson, who will to be the face of the organization for years to come. Even with quality numbers entering Week 5, nothing has been the same since the team’s 24-10 implosion from Arrowhead last January. Instead of struggling while boosting the stats, Watson came full-circle under center as the next big name at the position.

There’s no telling if the Texans will bounce back enough to compete for a playoff spot, but the removal of O’Brien only adds potential to the offense. In Week 1, the Seattle Seahawks ‘Let Russ Cook’ against the Falcons.

For Houston, it’s best they ‘Watch Watson sizzle’ as he tries to salvage the season down in NRG Stadium.

“I just got to continue to take it one play at a time, take what the defense give me and do what’s best for the team,” Watson said. “For me to do that, I just got to continue to be loose, continue to have fun and bring the joy and bring that confidence so it can spread throughout the team and give the city and the organization the hope that we can go win games.”