Despite being at complete opposite ends of their career journeys, Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Rodgers and Houston Texans’ Deshaun Watson remain two of the 10 best quarterbacks in the NFL under most metrics and rankings. Both threw for exactly 26 touchdowns, passed for more than 250 yards per game, and led their team to playoff victories in 2019.
Considering much has changed since the end of last season for both the Packers and Texans, it’s worth pondering who will have a stronger reaction to their respective changes.
For the Packers, the team traded up to select quarterback Jordan Love out of Utah State in the 1st round despite having a future Hall of Fame passer still under contract through the 2023 season. On the day of the draft, he publicly stated that he longed for the team brass to select a weapon to help improve their offensive firepower, which had not occurred since Rodgers was taken in 2005. Green Bay is coming off of a disappointing NFC Championship Game loss but is still considered one of the elite teams in the conference.
As for the Texans, Bill O’Brien shocked the league when he traded All-Pro wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals and drastically altered the landscape of the offense in the process. Watson and Hopkins connected for more than 3,300 yards and 25 touchdowns in their time together.
Taking away the kind of safety net that Hopkins brings to the table will force Watson to make more difficult throws with an inherently less talented group of wideouts.
With that being said, who is more likely to have a better season in 2020? The answer is Deshaun Watson, but for a different reason than you might be expecting.
