Deshaun Watson Struggles In Homecoming, Texans Lose Seventh Straight - Notebook
HOUSTON — It's been 700 days since quarterback Deshaun Watson played a regular-season game at NRG Stadium. At the time, Watson was the quarterback of the Houston Texans, who ended their 2020 campaign with a 41-38 loss to the Tennessee Titans.
When he walked off the field alongside J.J. Watt, fans cheered. Upon his return as the starting quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, fans booed.
Watson looked far from the player that electrified Texans fans for the last time 23 months ago. He threw for 131 yards and an interception. But his performance was enough as the Texans suffered a 27-14 loss Sunday afternoon.
"It's been a long road back," Watson said. "Houston is still a part of me, it's a part of my legacy. I had a lot of ups and downs with this organization. With this being my first game back, it was tough coming back to this stadium on the opposite side. Overall, there were a lot of emotions."
The lone bright spot for the Texans came on the defensive side of the ball.
Houston held the Browns offense scoreless. And with an interception and a sack, the Texans made it a rough homecoming for Watson.
But the Texans offense and special teams unit did not match the intensity of the defense. Houston committed four turnovers. Their most costly turnover came at the 10:10 mark of the third quarter when Tremon Smith muffed a punt that led to a Cleveland touchdown.
"I'm sure Deshaun is going to have better games than what he had today," Houston coach Lovie Smith said. "For the most part, we were in control defensively, but our offense wasn't great."
Another failed Kyle Allen outing
When Kyle Allen replaced second-year quarterback Davis Mills last Sunday, rust played a factor in his struggles against the Miami Dolphins.
Smith and Allen hoped his performance would be a complete 180 against the Browns. But unfortunately for the Texans, Allen's play digressed. He finished the game with 201 yards, while completing 51.2 percent of his passes.
"The defense played incredible today, I wished we had picked them up more," Allen said of the offense. "The turnovers they forced in the first half and to only come away with five — we have to do better than that."
Allen accounted for three of the four turnovers with a pair of interceptions and a snap-fumble. Smith said he was disappointed in the play of his quarterback, but there have been no thoughts about converting back to Mills.
Behind Allen's subpar production, the Texans recorded 283 yards while going 1-of-12 on third down.
"The one statistic that told the story of this game was the turnover ratio," Smith said. "Whenever you talk about non-offensive touchdowns, to give up three, we have to protect the ball better.
"We could never get the passing game going. But even if we did, we cannot turn the ball over like we did today."
Quick Hits:
- Rookie safety Jalen Pitre recorded his third-career interception at the 3:35 mark of the third quarter.
- After recording an average of 8.0 yards over the previous two games, rookie running back Dameon Pierce finished with 73 yards on 18 carries.
- With Brandin Cooks missing his second game of the season, Chris Moore led the team in receiving yards. He caught three balls for 46 yards.
Finals Words:
"However long I was out, I felt every single one of those hits." — Watson
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