Is Deshaun Watson playing in Week 3 against the Panthers?

The Houston Texans will host the Carolina Panthers in primetime on Thursday. The Texans are currently 1-1 and the Panthers have gotten off to a hot start with a 2-0 record.

While quarterback Sam Darnold is set to start for the Carolina Panthers, the Texans have a complicated situation at quarterback. Tyrod Taylor, who won the starting quarterback job during training camp and led the Texans to a win in Week 1, injured his hamstring against the Cleveland Browns in Week 2 and has been ruled out due to the short turnaround time between games this week.

So who will start for the Houston Texans on Thursday night? Will it be Deshaun Watson or someone else?

Will QB Deshaun Watson play Week 3 against the Panthers?

There has been so much talk surrounding quarterback Deshaun Watson and possibly him playing for the Houston Texans this season. With Tyrod Taylor out not only for Week 3 but possibly up to four weeks with a hamstring injury, many wondered if Watson would take the field at any point. Watson has been inactive for the first two weeks of the season. The quarterback is healthy and could play, but the team has opted to keep him out.

Houston Texans head coach David Culley said earlier in the week that Deshaun Watson was expected to be inactive again in Week 3, despite a possible opportunity for him to play.

Earlier this week, the Texans named rookie quarterback Davis Mills as the starter for the Texans on Thursday night. Mills came in for Taylor last week after he was injured, going 8/18 with 102 passing yards, one touchdown and one interception. The Texans drafted Mills out of Stanford in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Quarterback Jeff Driskel is listed as the backup to Mills for Thursday night and possibly beyond that, with Taylor out and Watson remaining inactive. The Texans signed Driskel as a free agent this summer after the Denver Broncos released him. But what is the next move for the Houston Texans and Deshaun Watson?

The quarterback does have pending legal issues, but aside from that, he wants out of Houston and has continued to request a trade. The Texans reportedly have a big-ticket price when teams inquire about a trade for Watson. But at this point, it may make more sense for the Texans to just part ways with a player that they are paying a significant amount of money to sit on the bench.

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