Deshaun Watson — 2026 Fantasy Outlook

Watson's final three seasons in Houston (2019–2021) were quietly excellent (a 25-22 record with two winning campaigns, a 68.7% completion rate, and 8.3 yards per attempt), even if the pass volume (32.9 attempts per game) sat below league average. His peak fantasy value arrived in 2020, when he led the NFL in passing yards (4,823) and accounted for 36 combined touchdowns. He was a legitimate rushing threat from 2018 to 2020, though an alarming sack total (62, 44, and 49 over those three seasons) was always the shadow over his game.

The Cleveland era was a slow-motion decline. In his 2022 return from suspension, Watson never found his footing (31 or fewer pass attempts in five of six starts), sub-170 passing yards in four games, and only two multi-touchdown outings. His completion rate dropped to 58.2%, and yards per attempt fell to 6.5, both significant regressions from his Houston benchmarks. 2023 was worse. Outside of one serviceable outing (305 yards and two touchdowns), Watson struggled to generate anything through the air, averaged just 5.6 yards per attempt over his first two starts, and eventually underwent shoulder surgery in late November after missing most of four games.

The 2024 season was his last starting chapter. Watson went 1-6 over seven games, failed to crack 200 passing yards in any matchup, and absorbed 33 sacks while averaging a diminished 5.3 yards per attempt. A torn Achilles in Week 7 (requiring two surgeries) ended his season and, in all likelihood, his relevance as an NFL starter.