JJ Watt Can't Win Games by Himself; Texans Going Nowhere Without Viable QB

Twenty-four points. That was the difference at the end of the first quarter, in favor of the Indianapolis Colts. The Houston Texans were all but finished, with just a 7 percent chance of winning, per Advanced Football Analytics.

It was then that defensive end J.J. Watt, 25, took it upon himself to show America what he's like on a weekly basis.

After taking a fumble recovery in for a touchdown at the 10:36 mark in the fourth quarter, the Texans trailed just 33-28. That's what the final score would read.

In a year where every six points is hard to come by for Houston, Watt has clearly been the league's most dominant player, if not worthy of the most "valuable" distinction because he doesn't play quarterback. The way things are going for Houston, maybe he should. 

His numbers are off the charts: Twenty-six tackles, four sacks, two fumble recoveries, one interception. He's also a target in the passing game these days, having registered a receiving touchdown on top of his two defensive scores.

I know we're supposed to bask in this. And if you are a Texans fan, you should; Watt is a once-in-a-generation player. But there is a reason why quarterbacks often win MVP awards. They are the most impactful players on the field, no matter how often Watt can make you think otherwise. 

The Texans went 2-14 last year with Watt. They are 3-3 this year with him. The problem is that, about 25 games after Matt Schaub began to lose his ability to be a solid quarterback, Houston hasn't filled the position adequately yet. 

Placeholder Ryan Fitzpatrick played—by his standards—a hell of a game, going 15-of-23 for 212 yards and a touchdown through the air.

He was placing balls in the right position for receivers Andre Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins to go outleap defenders, which is the best he can do. Despite the game-ending fumble, which occurred because Fitzpatrick was holding on to the ball too long to try to make something happen, this is the upper bounds of his quarterback play.

This was his ceiling. 

And because Houston dug itself into a large hole, with Fitzpatrick shoveling up three-and-outs left and right, there just wasn't enough time to climb out of it. No matter the heroics Watt was providing. 

There is reason for optimism in Houston in the long term.

We've seen plenty of examples of teams packing it in after falling behind early during Thursday Night Football. In fact, the 33-28 result was by far the closest in 2014. Starting with Week 5 and going to Week 1: Packers 42, Vikings 10; Giants 45, Redskins 14; Falcons 56, Buccaneers 14; Ravens 26, Steelers 6; Seahawks 36, Packers 16.

The Texans have a quartet of stars in Watt, Johnson, Hopkins and running back Arian Foster. The 28-year-old, oft-injured Foster had another huge game Thursday: 20 rushes for 109 yards and two scores, adding three receptions for 32 yards. For the season, he has 106 rushes for 513 yards and five TDs, along with 16 receptions and another 131 yards—and that's after missing the Giants game with a hamstring injury.

First-year head coach Bill O'Brien has made some snafus in game theory, as most coaches usually do, but the fact he's getting this level of play out of Fitzpatrick is noteworthy. 

But all of those things can only drag a shallow roster with a bad quarterback so far. The jury on the Colts as serious AFC contenders hasn't been written yet, but it was clear that their similarly shallow roster could be dragged a lot further with quarterback Andrew Luck and his receiving weapons. 

There's little reason to bench Fitzpatrick. Backup Ryan Mallett is what he is (a low-risk, low-reward proposition). Fourth-round rookie quarterback Tom Savage looked completely inept in the preseason and has yet to even be active on game day.

The NFL is just a league where inferior quarterback play is hard to overcome. Houston was in middle-class purgatory with Schaub (before he broke), and Fitzpatrick is worse.

Bob Levey/Getty Images

Watt is legitimately on pace to have one of the best defensive seasons in NFL history. The Texans, despite a weak schedule, are 3-3. 

It tells you all you need to know about how much quarterback play matters in the NFL.

Rivers McCown is the AFC South lead writer for Bleacher Report and the co-host of the Three-Cone Drill podcast. His work has also appeared on Football Outsiders and ESPN.com. Follow him on Twitter at @riversmccown.