Deshaun Watson
QB
Cleveland BrownsQ
- Top target Denzel Boston is questionable, which can lower the passing game.
- Top target Harold Fannin Jr. is questionable, which can lower the passing game.
A hurt top target or lead back nudges the projection up a little, since their work tends to shift to teammates. QB and offensive-line flags are shown for context but do not change the number.
This is how QBs have played against the Steelers in the 2026 season.
| Wk | Team | Player | Cmp | Att | PaYd | PaTD | INT | Car | RuYd | RuTD | FPts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  ATL | Cooper Rush | 12 | 22 | 143 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.7 |
| 2 |  NE | Drake Maye | 14 | 22 | 208 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 17 | 0 | 8.0 |
| 3 |  CIN | Joe Burrow | 28 | 37 | 282 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 22.6 |
| 4 | CLE | Deshaun Watson | 24 | 33 | 268 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 22 | 0 | 12.9 |
| 5 |  IND | Daniel Jones | 24 | 44 | 267 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 11.1 |
| 6 |  TB | Jalon Daniels | 22 | 43 | 164 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 39 | 0 | 11.2 |
| 7 |  NO | Tyler Shough | 30 | 38 | 278 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 13.8 |
| Average | 22.0 | 34.1 | 230.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.3 | 14.6 | 0.0 | 12.2 | ||
| Median | 24.0 | 37.0 | 267.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.0 | 13.0 | 0.0 | 11.2 | ||
| High | 30 | 44 | 282 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 39 | 0 | 22.6 | ||
| Low | 12 | 22 | 143 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.7 | ||
Averages are raw, outliers are never removed.
How Deshaun Watson should do vs the SteelersSeason log, the group you pick, and a projection
Season so far, compared with what the group you pick below has done against the Steelers, plus a projection for this game.
What is this table?
Rows at the top are every game Deshaun Watson has played this season, using the same stat columns as the table above.
Compare against picks which group of Steelers opponents to line them up with: the best QB they faced in each game (1), the second best (2), the third best (3), or all of the top three. Nobody knows which slot Deshaun Watson will land in this week, so this is your call, not a guess.
Steelers avg is the average line of that group. Difference is that minus Deshaun Watson's own average: green means the defense gives that slot more than Deshaun Watson usually produces.
Projected is Deshaun Watson's recent-weighted average scaled by how generous the Steelers were to the slot you picked. Change the slot and the projected points change, because each slot has a different matchup adjustment. Picking Top 3 uses the usual-role projection.
| Wk | Opp | Cmp | Att | PaYd | PaTD | INT | Car | RuYd | RuTD | FPts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JAX | 16 | 22 | 205 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 38 | 0 | 14.0 |
| 2 | TB | 24 | 30 | 238 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 22 | 0 | 19.7 |
| 3 | CAR | 16 | 30 | 144 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 45 | 0 | 20.3 |
| 4 | PIT | 24 | 33 | 268 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 22 | 0 | 12.9 |
| 5 | NYJ | 15 | 33 | 155 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 40 | 0 | 12.2 |
| 6 | BAL | 16 | 26 | 164 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 29 | 0 | 9.5 |
| 7 | TEN | 25 | 36 | 308 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 19 | 1 | 18.2 |
| 8 | PIT | 27 | 39 | 324 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 11.2 |
| Watson avg | 20.4 | 31.1 | 225.8 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 6.4 | 27.1 | 0.1 | 14.7 | |
| Steelers QB1 avg | 22.0 | 34.1 | 230.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 3.3 | 14.6 | 0.0 | 12.2 | |
| Difference | +1.6 | +3.0 | +4.3 | +0.1 | +0.6 | -3.1 | -12.6 | -0.1 | -2.6 | |
Difference is what the defense allows minus what Watson averages (green = defense gives up more). Projected stats scale the player's averages by the matchup adjustment, so they are a rough guide.
Prediction & chance to scoreDeshaun Watson vs the Steelers
Prediction for Deshaun Watson
Nobody knows which slot Deshaun Watson will land in this week, so pick the one you expect. The projection changes because each slot faces a different average from the Steelers.
I predict about 12.1 points for Deshaun Watson if playing as a QB1. Deshaun Watson has averaged 15.3 over 7 games, and the Steelers have given up 12.2 to QB1s (-27% vs the league average of 16.6).
How this projection is built
1. The player. Deshaun Watson scored: Wk 1 14.0, Wk 2 19.7, Wk 3 20.3, Wk 4 12.9, Wk 5 12.2, Wk 6 9.5, Wk 7 18.2. Average 15.3; weighted toward recent games it is 14.8.
2. The defense. Over 7 games, the Steelers allowed 12.2 points to their opponent's QB1. The league average for that slot is 16.6, so that is -27%.
3. Trusting small samples less. With 7 defensive games, only 70% of the gap is applied, capped at +/-30%. That gives a -19% adjustment (x0.81).
4. Result. 14.8 x 0.81 = 12.1. Switching slots only changes step 2 and 3: the player's own numbers stay the same, but each slot faces a different defensive average.
It is a statistical model, not knowledge of injuries, game script or weather.
Chance to score
Type a point total to see how likely Deshaun Watson is to reach it as a QB1.
Why this percentage?
The projection (12.1) is the middle of the range. Fantasy scores swing a lot from game to game, so the model spreads possible scores around it by about 4.8 points, leaning on Deshaun Watson's own game-to-game swings once there are several games (and on typical QB swings before that).
Scores are modelled as right-skewed, since a big game is possible but a very negative one is not. The percentage is the share of that spread at or above 12.
With only 7 games of history, treat this as a rough gauge. It gets sharper as the season goes on. It is never lower than 1% or higher than 99%.
InsightsPlain-English takeaways from the table
- QB1s have averaged 230.0 passing yards, 1.0 passing TDs and 14.6 rushing yards against the Steelers across 7 games.
- The Steelers allow 12.2 PPR points to QB1s, -27% versus the league average of 16.6 (ranked 29 of 32, where 1 is most generous). That is a tough matchup.
- Outlier: Week 3, Joe Burrow (22.6 pts) sits far above the other games and pulls the averages up. Average with it vs without it: pts 12.2 vs 10.5. The table above keeps the raw averages.
- 1 of 7 games reached 15+ PPR points. Scores range from 5.7 to 22.6 (median 11.2).
- Every QB1 in the sample cleared 120 passing yards.
- QB1s scored a touchdown in 5 of 7 games (71%).
Insights are generated by rules from the table above and recalculate every week.