Houston's Deshaun Watson Unbothered by Bear's Draft Decision in 2017

Deshaun Watson has no hard feelings towards the Bears for passing on him in the 2017 NFL Draft

Clemson head football coach Dabo Swinney once said that passing on his former National Championship quarterback, Deshaun Watson, in the 2017 NFL Draft was like passing on the great and iconic Michael Jordan. 

While that statement could be argued until the cows come home, it indeed has seemed like the Bears made a poor choice in passing not only on Deshaun Watson but also Patrick Mahomes in that draft. Two of the best young quarterbacks in the league today were passed by a team seeking a quarterback and it's quite mind-boggling in retrospect. 

Watson landed in Houston (4-8) with the 12th overall pick after (then) owner Rick Smith made the moves up in the pecking order to secure Watson. We all know how the Patrick Mahomes era is playing out in Kansas City (11-1) but Chicago (5-7) ended up with Mitchell Trubisky. 

To be fair, Bears fans have the right to ponder 'what could have been' watching Watson and Mahomes make spectacular plays week by week. The narrative of the organization ruining that draft pick has continued. On Wednesday, Houston's star QB was asked about his feelings of Chicago heading into this weekend's tilt where the Texans hope to bounce back from a heartbreaking 26-20 loss to Indianapolis on Sunday. 

Watson refuted a claim that Sunday's game against the Bears brings some extra motivation to the table or draws any feelings of bitterness towards the organization. 

"There's no motivation. That's just what their organization went with," Watson said. "I have no ties or nothing against the Chicago Bears or the organization. The media is going to make stories and those fans of course are going to stay something about it. But for me, there's no motivation. They did what they did, and you just keep pushing forward. They thought that was the best decision for themselves at that time."

Watson said he holds a good deal of respect for the Bears and there's no bad blood between the players, coaches, or organization in the windy city. The former Clemson Tiger also made it clear he's appreciative of his opportunity to play for Houston.

"I appreciate Rick and his trust in me and getting the pieces right for me to be here with this organization. I thank him and respect him for that. A salute to Rick and his family and to this day he'll always have my respect for sure."