The Ringer NFL Show - Deshaun Watson on His Time at Clemson and Being a Player-Activist | The Bakari Sellers Podcast

Episode Date: July 1, 2020

Bakari Sellers, host of ‘The Bakari Sellers Podcast,’ is joined by Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson to talk about his time playing at Clemson and the Black Lives Matter movement within the NFL. Host: Bakari Sellers Guest: Deshaun Watson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello and welcome to the Ringer NFL show. This is Bacari Sellers. I guess I'm a special guest host today, and I want to let you know that I host the Bacari Sellers podcast, but today's very special guest on the NFL show is my good friend, Sean Watson. We talk about absolutely everything going on from being a young author, being a black quarterback. We talk about the movement and protest and what we should expect from COVID in the NFL.

Join us. Make sure you download and subscribe to the Bacari Sellers podcast. Welcome to the Bacari Sellers podcast. This is the first debut show. And Deshawn, I never thought I would start my debut show by apologizing. I got to apologize to you. Why, look? For three years, I just talked cash money shit about you at Clemson, man.

And y'all just, you know, I'm a big game cop. Oh, that makes sense, Dan. I can't. Man, and y'all, you dog walked us three times. Talk to real quick, though, because I remember the best game I've ever seen you play was 2014. and you beat us with a torn ACL. You remember that game? Yeah, I do.

I do. How did you end up playing in that game? You literally tore your ACL set out and came back and beat us. Yeah, man, it was just literally I kind of go back. It was Georgia Tech. I kind of, you know, tweak my ankle a little bit. I'm in my knee a little bit. And they told me I tore it.

So those two weeks, man, I was like, man, I can't play in second line. I'm like, I promise Coach Swinney, as long as I'm here, I'm not losing to the game costs. Come on, man. I just knew. It was nothing against, you know, the quarterback, you know, cold or anything like that. But it was just like, man, I got to be out there. I know I had the energy that, you know, rally the guys together. And so I just kind of, you know, told Co Sweeney and the doctors and we had a meeting.

It's like, man, if you can go out there and make plays and brace you up and just protect yourself, you can play. So that whole week, I went with the twos. I went with the tools. They were watching me. I was running the ball. I was, you know, juke and spinning, everything. They were like, that Saturday was like, all right, well, you want to be. going to start, but we're not going to say anything right until the start. So it was cool.

Man, that game, that game broke my heart because I want to start off because I, you know, I want to talk about your time at Clemson and talk to me about you being a transformational figure at Clemson. Because before you got there, Clemson was even a word, right? And it's no longer. I mean, you completely change the way that people acknowledge Clemson football. When you look back on your career, how does it feel to see Clemson now annually competing for the national championship based in part on what you were able to do for the program. That is dope because, you know, I committed to Clemson when I was like 15 years old. So, like, I was through the whole Clemson.

I mean, when we lost to West Virginia by like... Man, West Virginia is still scoring touchdowns on that team, man. Everyone's doing with the Clemson. I'm like, yeah, man, I'm going to help change it. I can feel the energy that's Coach Swinney is building it in the culture. So, you know, I stuck with it. And for me to be able to go down and bring the people along with me, Man, it was awesome.

And for me to, you know, those two years, two and a half years, I was there to be able to change what, you know, the university is now. You know, it feels good to be a big part of it. Man, you changed the whole program. I mean, y'all weren't to beat that team with Melvin Ingram, Steph Gilmore and Alshan and Clownie and them. But you, y'all want to beat them. But, you know, whatever. I know Clownie told you that in the locker room, right? Yeah, we used to always go back before.

He gave me some respect, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, man, if you was like, yeah, man, if he was like, he was like, man, he was like, on that team, you know, when we was there, you know, it would have been back and forth. You know, he would still have said they would have came out on top, but he said it would have been a good game. Man, talk to me real quick because you were able to crack the code. And we want to talk about stuff going on right now, but I was just so enamored. Coming from Gainesville, you lived, and I was reading your book, pass it on.

You got a new book coming out, man. Yeah, I do. When does it come out? September. I want to say the exact date is my birthday, September 14th. But, you know, still sometime in that September, either. the week before or on my birthday. Man, I just had a book come out, man.

It feels good. When you're going to be nervous, but when it comes out, man, it's a special feeling. You got a chapter in there talking about where you come from, never forget where you come from. And I don't think a lot of people noted in Gainesville, you grew up in, what was it, Harrison Square? It was government housing in Harrison Square. Yeah. Talk to me a little bit about how it feels to go from Harrison Square, never forgetting where you came from to running down that hill at Clemson. I mean, it was crazy.

It was like a movie. ever since I graduated from Gainesville and took that next step to go to a four-year college and play big national football. I mean, that's what we used to always watch on the square. We used to always meet up at either my house or one of my friend's house or go to the barbershop, you know, catch a Saturday morning.

You know, you try to get a haircut, fight out of a haircut and catch the game on TV. So with everybody in there talking, and hopefully that, you know, they pit on a good game, you know, because it's all the old heads in there. But, I mean, I used to always just think about, man, I'm going to play on that one day. I'm going to be on TV one day.

I'm going to play for a national championship one day. And for me to be able to do that and take that next step, man, it was cool. And to see the whole neighborhood and see my whole city rally behind me and really take charge and really support me, it was awesome. And not only that, man, but now, how are you now? 25? 24. 24.

You got a whole book coming out, man. How does that feel? I mean, you are, you know, when you think about athletes, people don't give them the respect that they deserve. I mean, not only are you out here being an advocate, but you have a book. book, are you trying to change the way that people look at black athletes, people look at athletes in general? Oh, for sure. Athletes in general, but especially, you know, especially what's going on today, you know, the black athletes and really the black quarterbacks and being

able to, you know, team up with my guy Bernie and God David and Quincy Avery and all my whole team and come together. Honestly, if I was back in the day when I was in middle school, school, if you told me I was going to put out a book by the age of 24 or 25, I would have told you, nah, not a chance. I don't even like to read. I'm not even writing a school book, so I'm not even going to. I want everybody to know, man, I picked this thing up, and you talked about like a movie. I mean, this is like, this is better than blindside.

I thought that was, anyway, trash. But this is a legit book. And as somebody who wrote a book that has some success, we won a New York Times bestsellers list three times. And I'm from a small city called Denmark, where we got three stop lights and a blinking light. Much props to you, man. I know how hard it is. And just feeling that Gainesville love. And I didn't even know you grew up in a place like Harrison Square. So learning so much about you. You know, I never liked you while you were Clemson, but I love you now, my brother. Before we get into what's going on right now, because, you know, this is a cool, dope platform

we got. You did something in college football that people rave about but weren't able to do, like, in your football mind, talk to me about how you were able to crack Nick. Sabin's defenses. Going back and you think about that, you put up over a thousand yards against Saban and 75 points in two games against Alabama's defenses on the biggest stage. What was that feeling like? I mean, because Alabama, they were just dragging everybody. Right, right. I mean, it was just a different mindset. And it started with me. I knew that I feared nothing. You know what I'm saying? And every time I step on the field, I felt like. You don't, you don't fear Will Must, champ? No, not.

Man, that's Davos Sweeney's little brother, man. I don't even feel right saying that, man. No, but it was just really just bad. I knew every time I stepped on the field versus whoever we played. I was going to be the best player on the field. And I want the ball in my hand. So I've always had that mentality coming from where I come from. And that just kind of spread throughout the team.

And we just came together, played as one, played with love and passion. And, you know, we end up getting through them. What are as tough as people said, they were? Because you shredded them. Yeah, they were good. Both times they were good. You know, the first time we lost by 5, 45 to 40 in Arizona. But the second time, that defense, I mean, all those guys could be looking on the NFL

Ross. So all those guys on the NFL defense in 2016, they're starting on NFL team right now. That's crazy. And y'all shredded them. Yeah, that was the NFL team we played it yet. Talk to me about that last play, though. That was the Hunter play, right? Hunter Info when you rode out.

He was wide open, man. I could have caught that. We knew. We knew exactly because once they were called. What was it called? Tell me what was it called? I can't remember to play. We motion a runner back.

again, it was like a roll. So I think we called it rope, like switch or something like that. I can't exactly remember the name, but we knew once we get inside of the five, they were covered zero. Cover zero is all our blitz and everyone in man coverage. And so we knew that, you know, once we do that, if we do like a little switch route, you know, they're going to get lost. And Hunter Info was the best guy to do that because he was patient enough and he had, you know, secure hands that. Yeah, he wasn't dropping nothing. You know, flip it out there. Man, you know how hard it is to be a Carolina fan when Clemson winning national

championships. Man, that's, I'm depressed thinking about it, man. Anyway, we go move on. Hey, tell me about last year, y'all, you went to the Pro Bowl. Yes, sir. Last year, y'all, y'all want a playoff game. Y'all got, but then y'all got beat by the Super Bowl champions. What was different about last year than your first couple of seasons and how do you build on last year's success? I feel like it was health. It was health and being able to play 16 games and then some more. Because the NFL season is long. It's very tough. It wears down on your body.

And definitely, you know, having all the guys healthy and having all the guys fresh by the playoffs, it was very key. The first time we went to the playoffs, you know, we played the coach. That was all, like, third or fourth time playing them. Very disciplined team. We wouldn't have, you know, all the guys.

I think D.Haw was hurt. I mean, everyone was hurt. And then last year, you know, we kind of rode back against Buffalo. And then, you know, we had a great lead in the first half versus the, Chiefs and then we just kind of went downhill from there. We just kind of, you know, hit the, you know, the break.

Yeah. But I feel like just kind of, you know, bringing everyone together, you know, and it's really experience. We had a young team, but now we've got a veteran squad that played a lot of football. So I feel like this year we have an opportunity to even go further. Talk to me about this year, though. I mean, what are the conversations like in the league? You see the NBA is going through it right now with COVID.

Are y'all talking about it yet? When are y'all going back to practice? I mean, what's that look like? Yeah, they say everything start on time. end of July training camp. I'm not sure exactly we haven't heard anything exactly how we're going to do it. If they're going to let people go home during training camp, or we're going to be quarantined in a hotel and try to, you know,

stay away from people, but that's kind of hard. You know, people got families and kids. I mean, so how do you weigh what's best for you and your family? I mean, you just go out there and play and let the chips fall where it may? Yeah, but, I mean, it's risky because you don't know, you know, there's so many people. You don't know who have it or, you know what I'm saying?

It just kind of can spread through that way because, you know, football as a content, you don't hit each other. I know. A lot of spit everything, I'm saying? Can you imagine playing football with no fans, though? That'd be tough. I've never experienced it. Even pee-wee, you got, you know, you got the parents in the fans.

You don't have nobody in the stands. That's crazy. We can hear everything you calling out, everything you're saying? Everything. It'll be, wow. And that wouldn't even be the hard part. The hard part is just really just the energy, just like, damn, when we score, it's just like, it's quiet.

All you hear to do it is. You know, so. Yeah, so let's switch gears a little bit. Talk to me. I saw you in this Black Lives Matter video. Thank you, by the way. You and all the players speaking up. How did that video come together?

And were you worried about any pushback from the league or from ownership of the Texans or anything like that? Not at all. The pushback, we wasn't even worried about it. It started with, I want to say, Mike Thomas and a couple of older guys, and they contacted everyone in a video. And we got in, like, a group chat. You know, we came together. And we kind of put it together. they're very, very fast because we all knew we're all on the same page.

We all were, you know, on board. And that's something that we want to, you know, speak out about with everything going about. We wasn't even worried about the NFL or what our organization had to say because that's how we feel. And that's why, you know, we've been feeling that way for a long time. And this was a perfect opportunity for us to come out and say it. Man, I was so proud of y'all. And then you and D. Hop, I mean, you guys came together to talk about taking down the

Calhoun and Ben Tillman statues from your days at Clemson. And thank you for that. I mean, it's like you're, I mean, do you recognize the power? Do you guys do quarterbacks and athletes? Do you all recognize the power you have now? Because you and D. Hop did something that should have been done a long time ago from Clemson and y'all made them do it. Honestly, I feel like this is the perfect 2020 with everything going on from the pandemic

and the social justice and everything that's going on. This is the first time I feel like a lot of athletes feel like they have, they can feel their power and their voice. Even me. I mean, even, you know, growing up through high school, through college, I had a lot of power, but I never really said too much because I didn't feel like, you know what I'm saying? I didn't feel like it was a time. I didn't feel like I had enough support behind me to be able to say what I wanted to say.

And I was chasing, you know, my dream and trying to get out of poverty from my family and things like that. But now I feel like, you know, with everything going on, all that stuff doesn't even matter. justice and being able to have, you know, the right way of living in everyone being equal is most important than, you know, all the material stuff. Man, that's so profound, man. Let me ask you, I mean, you know, we talk about Black Lives Matter, you know, we talk about, but I want to ask you a football question, just an honest football question.

You look around the league, you got 32 quarterbacks and what, back up on each team, that's 64 quarterbacks, and maybe some quarterbacks carry, some teams carry three quarterbacks. I don't know. is Colin Kaepernick good enough to play in the NFL? Not the political stuff, but is Colin Kaepernick a good enough player to play in the NFL? Sure. Yeah, no doubt. Because I was like, I'm up here talking about it on CNN, and people look at me like, I'm crazy.

But I, you know, I see. Super Bowl, what, 2012? Yes. You know what I'm saying? After that, that's when everything went down. And so he haven't been able to, you know, show what he got. But I'm pretty sure if he was still on the San Francisco team, he would have probably be playing in the playoffs every year.

Yeah. I mean, okay, I wanted to make sure I wasn't going crazy. So what's next for you on the social justice front? Have you thought about it? I know you got a book coming out. I mean, and you saw Pat Mahomes just joining forces with LeBron talking about helping people register to vote. Is that one of your focuses? What's next for you on this front? Yeah, I feel like that's the next step is really taking action of voting, changing the inside. And for me, I'm still learning myself. I'm still growing. I'm still trying to educate myself and educate my family and people around me. So, you know, I feel like, you know, not actually being on that board with, you know, registered voting, but I'm supporting that group. I'm supporting, you know, everything, you know, me and D. Andre Hopkins, we talk a lot.

We still want to, you know, continue to get together. I think he's in Houston. So, you know, whenever this COVID thing, you know, kind of subtle. down, especially we get together and, you know, do some things. Kenny Stills is my teammate and great friends. So I talked to him. I actually taught the Kaepernett two weeks ago about things he was doing. So me just kind of, you know, supporting everybody and really taking charge and being, you know,

a voice that I can help spread the work. Definitely. And now you see college players speaking up. I mean, I was so proud of your boy, Trevor Lawrence for speaking up and using his voice. I mean, and you feel that change now because when you were in college and even before then, athletes didn't really speak up, but now you're starting to see athletes speaking up on the college level. Right, right, and which is good. And that's what goes back to what I was saying. Athletes feeling like they can say, even at that level, they can speak up and hold their power and have a voice and say what they want to say and control what they can control.

Let me ask you about black quarterbacks because last year was a ban of year for black quarterbacks. I didn't even realize this until I was preparing to talk to you. But Pat won the Super Bowl. Lamar won the MVP. You started the Pro Bowl. and Russ had a great season. Like, do you finally think that we can, like, put all that bullshit aside about the stereotypes that black quarterbacks have, that they don't have the chops intellectually to play the game? I mean, do you finally think we've turned that corner? Yeah, and I've been fighting that for the longest.

I mean, even when I was coming out of college, you know, they were saying that, you know, all the things I did, you know, all the records I broke, things like that. And they were saying that I still wouldn't be able to transfer over to the NFL. And when I got to this organization, you know, my coached stuff, I already knew. Like, I mean, this guy's already events, you know, and being around so many young, especially black, you know, quarterbacks that is coming out of college and high school.

I mean, those guys are very, very smart. They're getting the proper training. They're getting the proper education to be able to take that next step and be, you know, a professional. I saw that reporter try you one time in a post-game interview about. I think we lost that guy. And it was against Carolina. Yeah, yeah.

So, I mean, you go through things like this. And then you have, tell me about, I mean, when you go through, so people don't really know, people listening to the show, they just think that, you know, you show up, you work out, and then somebody calls you on your phone when you're in the house with your family, and that's how you get drafted. But you go through interviews with these teams, or at least allegedly. Yeah, you go through interviews. You meet with them at the pre-draft.

You go to their cities and their facilities. They come work you out, wherever you are. I mean, they do everything. I mean, they're really, you know, investing on you to be able to come change their franchise, especially as a quarterback. Well, thanks to you, I mean, and a lot of you guys, you, Russ, Pat, Lamar. I mean, it's just because, you know, you remember people were saying Lamar Jackson should have been a running back or wide receiver. Yeah, my receiver, yeah.

Yeah, I mean, no, I knew he was going to be a quarterback. I mean, you know, you don't have to respond to this, but you do know you should have won that Hizman over Lamar, right? I should want to bat the bat. Oh, so you agree with it. I mean, Lamar had a hell of a year. You know, he had a hell of a year. But he lost like four games, though. He lost the last in November.

He lost a couple of games. That's my dog, though. So he deserve it. The year before, man, I was the first player ever in FBS history to pass over 4,000 yards and rushed for 1,000 yards ever, never been done. Johnny Mazzelle, Cam Newton. I mean, you go all the way back. And, you know, I came in like third or second, you know, in my sophomore year.

Derek Ken, we won that year. Derek Henry and we won that year. But, you know, it is what it is. And we just kind of go from there. I know we're about to get you out here. Let me talk to you real quick about something that people on social media have been talking about. A lot of people are now saying that blue-chip black athletes should consider playing at HBCUs. Did you ever consider playing at a HBCU as I'm rocking the Alabama and them Bulldog shirt today?

Honestly, no. I never thought about it. And I feel like, honestly, none of those schools came and talked to me. He came and talked to the other guys. They were come by the, you know, the schools at high school and come out of class. and, you know, they'll talk to my teammates. And they'll say what's up to me, but they wouldn't, like, you know, they wouldn't show any type of interest.

So, of course, I was committed to Clemson, and I wanted to play big time college football. What do these schools need to do, what would they need to do to recruit a player, Deshaun Watson, caliber player? I mean, honestly, they would have to show, it would have to start with the student, not the student body, but it would have to start with, you know, the facilities. Yeah, yeah.

But, like, that's the biggest part, you know, No one wants to go to, you know, you're coming from a big time high school and your facility is better than your college facilities. No one wants to sound great. You feel me? And it's not against that university, you know what I'm saying? But that's just how to go, especially for football. Basketball is a different story. You know, basketball is a different story.

That's what's up. That's what's up. So I know you got the, before I let you go, I know you got the DeShan Watson Foundation. Tell me what's going on with that. Anything new going on with the DeShon Watson Foundation? Yeah, yeah. We wanted to, especially, I mean, like I said, the COVID is really slowing everything down. But, you know, really-

Coronavirus won't let us be great, man. Yeah. But, you know, the foundation is still going forward, still on track and, you know, making sure that we're getting, you know, the proper education out towards these, you know, private communities, especially around in Houston and back in Gainesville.

And then also, you know, building houses and, you know, making sure that these school systems are, you know, making sure that the young kids are having an opportunity to fulfill their futures. That's what's up, man. Your book is dope. I'm proud of you, man. all the things you're doing.

You and D. Hop, I mean, I never thought I'd be sitting here talking about Clemson players like this, man. But I'm so, like, I truly am so proud of you. Trevor Lawrence wouldn't be doing the things he's doing in terms of social justice. If it wasn't for people like you, you know, you were really changing the whole paradigm. And so congratulations and props to that. And thank you and to your whole team for allowing you to come on the Bacari Sellers podcast for a few minutes.