Let’s be honest, no one likes to lose.
And when you’re losing more than you’re winning, it’s an even tougher pill to swallow.
Such is the life of Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans, who now sit at a grim 4-8 as Week 13 winds down. There are only four more weeks left in the regular season, leaving the team with little time to make up lost ground.
Watson didn’t look his best in Sunday’s 26-20 loss to the Colts, either. Despite putting up an impressive 341 yards, the 25-year-old was sacked fives times, intercepted once and fumbled the ball on the two-yard line to end the game.
Naturally, Watson was tough on himself after Sunday’s defeat. And while he knows every loss is tough, he finds the team’s current situation particularly frustrating.
“This (expletive) hurts. I’m tired of losing,” he told reporters after Sunday’s loss, via The Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson. “Being so close over the years, it’s just, yeah, it’s tough.”
Watson’s position is entirely understandable. Though they haven’t always performed at this low a level, the Texans still haven’t escaped the Divisional Round of the playoffs, and this year likely won’t be any different. Having a losing record after steadily improving the last three seasons isn’t easy to see, either.
All this losing is starting to get to Watson.
“As a player, over my career, even back in little league, you haven’t lost this many games. It’s tough to handle,” he said. “Your try to hold so much weight on your shoulders where it becomes a breaking point. Like I always preach, my standards is trying to be legendary, and I’m working toward it. … I just felt like I was just disappointed for the whole city. I mean, honestly, that’s how I took it. … That’s why I was sitting on the bench.
“(We’re) so close,” he added. “We’ve been so close these last four years since I’ve been here where we just can’t, for some reason, haven’t gotten over that stepping stool. But one day we will for sure, I promise you that.”
The Texans can finish the season at 8-8 if they win out. That means beating the Colts, Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals and Tennessee Titans along the way.
And chances are, that still won’t be enough for Houston to squeak into the postseason. But it’s certainly worth trying.
