Bill O'Brien: Deshaun Watson on Schedule to Return from Injury at Training Camp

Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien told the Good Morning Football show that starting quarterback Deshaun Watson should return to action for training camp after tearing his ACL during the 2017 season.

"It's his intelligence, his poise, his hunger to learn. He's a fun guy to coach," O'Brien said, per Will Selva of NFL Network. "He's on schedule to participate in training camp, and we're excited about that."

Watson, 22, was nothing short of a revelation for the Texans once he was named the starter in Week 2. He threw for 1,699 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions in seven games, completing 61.8 percent of his passes. He also rushed for 269 yards and another two scores.

In his six starts, the Texans went 3-3. In games Watson didn't start, the Texans went 1-9. Suffice to say, Watson was a transformative force, and his loss to an ACL tear in November changed the team's season. 

Watson has insisted he won't let that setback affect how he plays.

"My game's not changing," he said in April, per Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com. "Whatever you [saw] last year is going to be the same, if not better. I've dealt with adversity before, had injuries before. I didn't let that slow me down. It just changed my attitude about the game.

"A lot of people would think that I'd come back hesitant, but I'm going to make sure I come back more forceful and with a stronger and more intense attitude."

The Texans have also had a full offseason to prepare for Watson as the starter and build a playbook around his skill set and abilities.

"We were very simple last year," Watson noted in April. "With me being in the system for a whole year and having the offseason, there's a lot more that we can do with the offense than we did last year."

Watson will have a cadre of weapons to work with upon his return, from wide receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller to running backs Lamar Miller and D'Onta Foreman. Combined with the return of J.J. Watt defensively, the Texans will have big expectations in 2018.