New York Jets: Deshaun Watson injury a warning for young quarterbacks
For those who want the New York Jets to give young quarterbacks already on the roster a ‘tryout’, Deshaun Watson should be a precautionary tale of what can go wrong.
Recently, New York Jets head coach Todd Bowles was recently quoted as saying “it’s not Triple-A” when referring to giving the young quarterbacks — Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty — a chance to play after the bye week. The Jets also have a terrible offensive line, and that could be playing a huge factor into why the Jets aren’t going with the you quarterbacks right now.
Many people have referred to the injury to Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson as a “freak injury,” but the Jets are learning their lesson and not taking unnecessary risks with their two young quarterbacks. According to Pro Football Focus Elite, Watson faced pressure on nearly half (47.7 percent) of his dropbacks prior to the injury. He was sacked 19 times and had 36 carries prior to the injury.
Watson is athletic, and his athleticism may have helped lead to the injury. The Texans inserted him into the starting lineup because Tom Savage was getting pounded, and they felt they needed a more mobile quarterback. Here’s the problem with that philosophy: The more often a quarterback runs or scrambles, the more likely he is to land awkwardly, cut wrong, etc. That will lead to more “freak” injuries for quarterbacks, even non-contact ones in practice.
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When you look at the Jets offensive line, it’s not really much better than the Texans. According to Pro Football Elite, Jets quarterback Josh McCown has faced pressure on 38.6 percent of his dropbacks, and despite having played every week, still has ten fewer carries than Watson.
McCown is willing to take sacks and throw the ball away rather than take off and run, unless he has to. There’s a chance that Petty and Hackenberg haven’t shown the willingness to take the sacks or throw the ball away.
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Sometimes you have to take risks to make your future better. This isn’t necessarily one of them. Give the young quarterbacks the rest of the season to grow and mature, and build the offensive line. Then, in 2018, let them compete for the starting quarterback job, and may the best man win.