Deshaun Watson's record against every NFL team

No quarterback has been a more prominent focal point of the 2021 NFL offseason than Houston Texans signal caller Deshaun Watson.

The 25-year-old dual-threat QB signed a four-year, $177.5 million contract extension with the Texans in September of last year, but quickly became disgruntled with the front office amidst a disappointing 4-12 season in 2020.

The three-time Pro Bowler formally requested a trade from Houston in late January, and would make for a considerable upgrade at quarterback for a number of franchises.

Last season, Watson led the league in passing yards (4,823), and ranked second in passer rating (112.4) and third in completion percentage (70.2%), despite playing without his former No. 1 target, DeAndre Hopkins, who was traded to Arizona.

The former first-round draft pick is the first player in NFL history to record more than 4,000 passing yards, at least 25 touchdown passes, and more than 500 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns in a single season. He also ranks second in career passer rating (104.5), behind only Patrick Mahomes (108.7).

To further explore Watson’s value at quarterback, let’s look back on the first four seasons of his career, and examine his regular-season and postseason records against every NFL team.

Watson vs. the Atlanta Falcons

In Watson's lone meeting with Atlanta in 2019, he recorded a perfect passer rating (158.3), completing 28-of-33 passes for 426 yards, five touchdowns, and no interceptions.

His 28 completed passes set the record for most completions with a perfect passer rating, while he tied Jared Goff for most attempts.

Watson vs. the Detroit Lions

While the 2020 season was mostly a down year for the Texans, Watson accomplished one significant milestone in a Week 12 matchup with Detroit.

In Houston's 41-25 win, Watson became the NFL's all-time leader in regular-season career passer rating, after he completed 17-of-25 passes for 318 yards and four scores.

Five days later, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes moved ahead of Watson in career passer rating. 

Watson vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars

Watson made his regular-season debut at quarterback in the second half of a matchup against AFC South rival Jacksonville on Sept. 10, 2017. 

In the third quarter, he threw his first NFL touchdown on a four-yard pass to Hopkins, but lost the game, 29-7.

Watson has since won six straight against the Jaguars. 

Watson vs. the Kansas City Chiefs

Watson is 1-2 against Mahomes, who was selected No. 10 overall in Watson's draft class, and 1-3 overall against Kansas City.

In 2019, Watson beat the Chiefs in the regular season, while Mahomes dealt with an ankle injury, and suffered a defeat to Kansas City in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.

In that postseason matchup, the Texans built a 24-0 lead, but squandered it before halftime, and lost by a final score of 51-31.

Watson vs. the New England Patriots

Watson is 2-2 against the Patriots and 1-2 against quarterback Tom Brady.

The Texans QB was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week after a Week 13 win against New England on Sunday Night Football in 2019. In that matchup, Watson threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns, and caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Hopkins.

In 2020, Watson again won Player of the Week honors after a performance against New England, as he tallied 344 passing yards, two touchdowns, and a rushing score in a 27-20 victory.

Watson vs. the Seattle Seahawks

During Watson's rookie season, he posted his first career game with over 400 passing yards against Seattle in Week 8.

Following that contest, Watson tore his ACL during practice, which sidelined him for the final nine games.

In his shortened season, Watson finished with 1,699 passing yards and set the record for passing touchdowns by a rookie in a seven-game span, with 19.

Watson vs. the Tennessee Titans

Against AFC South opponent Tennessee, Watson has split wins and losses across six meetings.

In Week 4 of his rookie season, Watson tied the rookie touchdown record, as he piled on four touchdown passes and one rushing score against Tennessee.

The following game, against Kansas City, Watson tied a rookie record for touchdown passes (5) in a single game while facing quarterback Alex Smith and the Chiefs. He also became the first rookie to record five touchdowns in consecutive games.

Watson vs. the Buffalo Bills

In 2019, Watson got his first playoff win in a Wild Card matchup against Buffalo.

After trailing 16-0 in the middle of the third quarter, Watson guided the Texans to a 22-19 overtime win.

His most notable play came in extra minutes, when he evaded a sack by two Bills defenders and found Taiwan Jones for a 34-yard pass that set up the game-winning field goal.

Watson vs. the Indianapolis Colts

Watson has endured the most trouble against AFC South foe Indianapolis.

His only victories came in a narrow 37-34 win in 2018 against quarterback Andrew Luck and a 20-17 road win against Jacoby Brissett in 2019.

Watson also lost to the Colts in his first postseason appearance in 2018. The third-seeded Texans hosted the Colts in the Wild Card Round that year, but lost 21-7 to Luck and the No. 6 seed Colts.