Texans quarterback Tom Savage has declared himself to be “super ready” for the competition with rookie Deshaun Watson. Actually, Savage doesn’t need to be ready at all.
As John McClain of the Houston Chronicle explained the situation on Tuesday’s PFT Live, there is no true competition. Savage is the starter, and he’ll remain the starter until injured or proven ineffective during the regular season. So while G.M. Rick Smith has said Watson will compete for the job, it won’t be the typical competition that entails the splitting of first-team reps with a winner announced before Week One.
This doesn’t mean Watson won’t be the next Dak Prescott. For that to happen, however, Savage and Brandon Weeden will need to be proven incompetent or incapacitated. As McClain explained it, coach Bill O’Brien doesn’t want to put a rookie quarterback on the field unless there’s no other choice.
Last month, O’Brien made clear his views regarding the difficulty of entrusting the job to a rookie from the outset of his first season. McClain, who knows the Texans as anyone, made clear his belief that the supposed competition has already ended, because it never will begin. Tom Savage is the guy.