Arian Foster Discusses The Deshaun Watson Situation

The number of Hall of Fame worthy players in the history of the Houston Texans is limited to a very select few. So when one voices his opinion on the current state or future of the team, people should sit up and pay attention.

Case in point: When Houston’s all-time greatest wide receiver, Andre Johnson, spoke up about the Deshaun Watson situation recently with a single tweet.

Now, it’s the greatest running back in franchise history stepping into the fray. Arian Foster recently joined Sports Radio 610 to discuss the current Deshaun Watson dilemma the Texans have on their hands.

Arian Foster:

“If I’m the organization, I bend to his will. There’s no way you don’t. He’s a generational quarterback. You never had a quarterback like him. You’re not going to have a quarterback like him in the next who knows how many decades. You bend to his will. What do you need to keep you here? What would keep you here? What do you want? What do you need?”

Makes complete and total sense. Anyone in the Texans organization who doesn’t agree should show themselves out. Foster went on to compare Watson to another once-in-a-generation signal caller who played in the AFC South.

“I remember when Peyton Manning was with the Colts. He was in the draft room. He had that much pull because that was his squad. You’re not going without Peyton. And, so, if you have that kind of generational talent, get him involved.”

To further drive home his points, Foster poked holes in the ridiculous trade scenarios people are throwing around, as if any number of pulls on the NFL Draft slot machine could match having one of the five best quarterbacks in the NFL already on your roster.

“I heard recently he’s worth three first-rounders. Like, dog, you can have five first-round picks and you’re not going to get a talented quarterback like that. You can have a first-round pick every year for the next tenyears and you’re not going to get a talented quarterback like that. Maybe, but you already have one. So why not invest in this one? It don’t make no sense.”

For demonstrative purposes, look at this list of Detroit Lions first round draft picks since the modern era of the NFL began in 1970. Aside from Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson, the Lions have gone fifty years without drafting a player like Deshaun Watson. As great as Sanders and Johnson were, neither could propel a franchise forward the way a quarterback could. Fifty years. No one currently playing in the NFL was alive in 1970. Not even Tom Brady. You can say, “Well, that’s the Detroit Lions and they’re run by people who don’t care about winning championships.” Repeat those words but replace “Detroit Lions” with “Houston Texans” and embrace that truth if Houston lets Deshaun walk away.

If the Texans are dumb enough to trade Deshaun Watson, it means they’re committed to potentially spending the next several lifetimes looking for a franchise quarterback who can be as good as Deshaun Watson. Hopefully, hearing the words of Andre Johnson and Arian Foster are enough to get Cal McNair, Nick Caserio, and Jack Easterby to sit up and listen. Call a meeting with Watson, ask him what he wants, then make it happen. Otherwise, it could be 2065 before the Texans draft Matthew Stafford III and even longer before they ever sniff a season from a quarterback like Watson had in 2020.