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What to expect when the Deshaun Watson circus comes to H-Town this Sunday

What to expect when the Deshaun Watson circus comes to H-Town this Sunday
Deshaun Watson returns to NRG this Sunday. Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey may have pulled up stakes five years ago, but the NFL’s long-delayed freak show is coming to town Sunday at NRG Stadium.

Deshaun Watson, the Houston Texans one-time prodigal son turned accused serial lech, will be at quarterback for the visiting Cleveland Browns. After missing most of the past two years due to a combination of pouting, investigations and punishment over alleged sexual misconduct with dozens of massage therapists, Watson was reinstated to the Browns roster this week after serving an 11-game suspension.

Nothing will ever convince me that the NFL didn’t determine the number of games to sideline Watson so he could return for the Browns 12th game against the Texans in Houston. What's that they say about the alleged suspect always returns to the scene of the alleged crime?

You couldn’t script it any better. Remember, Watson demanded to be traded from the Texans before any masseuses started claiming that Watson acted inappropriately with them. What followed were transcripts of charges and testimony by the women that made Penthouse letters look like Mother Goose nursery rhymes.

Two grand juries failed to indict Watson on any criminal charges and the quarterback settled out of court with most of the accusers. The NFL eventually suspended Watson and ordered him to get counseling and to use only team-approved massage therapists in the future. Watson has complied with the NFL's demands.

So what will happen when Watson takes the field Sunday? It’s likely that the stadium announcer will downplay Watson’s presence. This will mark 700 days since Watson last threw a pass in an NFL regular season game. Will he come out rusty or will seething anger and revenge fuel Watson to his former All-Pro talent? He was the most productive quarterback in the NFL in 2020, his last season of action for the Texans.

While the game won’t be a matchup of Super Bowl contenders, Watson v. Texans will be dripping with controversy and intrigue. Sex sells, and Watson may now be a villain, at least in Houston, whose alleged sexual misbehavior will forever stain his reputation. If the crazy needed a cherry on top, Tony Buzbee, attorney for most of Watson's accusers, has said he will bring 10 of the masseuses to NRG Stadium on Sunday just to … whatever Buzbee thinks that will accomplish. Buzbee is not averse to publicity and this time it's personal.

Watson did nothing to tamp down the controversy surrounding Sunday’s game when he failed to meet the media on Wednesday, the day NFL quarterbacks typically hold a press conference. That might have been a calculated and understandable decision by the Browns. Watson has a history of putting his foot in his mouth by apologizing for his behavior and then seemingly taking it back. He did talk with the media on Thursday but would not address any non-football issues.

If Ringling Bros promised a three-ring event, Sunday's Texans and Browns clash is a no-rings circus. The Texans and Browns are two of only four current NFL teams that have never appeared in a Super Bowl. Stop guessing, the other two teams are the Detroit Lions and Jacksonville Jaguars. The Texans are the one and only team that has never even sniffed a conference championship game.

True, Sunday’s game at NRG Stadium is a stinker on paper. The Texans are a dismal 1-9-1, the worst record in the NFL and trending in the wrong direction. The Browns are 4-7, tied for last place in the AFC North.

CBS is treating the game with the lack of respect and importance it deserves. The network will not be sending its No. 1 announce team, Jim Nantz, Tony Romo and Tracy Wolfson, to Houston. Nor will CBS be dispatching its No. 2 team, Ian Eagle, Charles Davis and Evan Washburn. Instead calling the action will be Spero Dedes, Jay Feely and Aditi Kinkhabwala.

On top of that, CBS will air the game only in a small sliver of Southeast Texas plus Lubbock. It will be, by far, the least visible game on CBS’ roadmap of America. Games between the Jets-Vikings, Broncos-Baltimore and Steelers-Falcons will carve up the rest of the country in Sunday’s noon game slot.

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The Coogs are back in action Friday night. Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images.

Sixteen may be sweet, but it isn’t the only relevant number as the NCAA Tournament heads into the regional semifinals.

Here are some other numbers worth knowing for each team. These statistics will help you learn more about each of the remaining teams and could explain how some of them got this far.

EAST REGION

UCONN: In UConn’s second-round victory over Northwestern, Donovan Clingan became just the third player in tournament history to get 14 points, 14 rebounds and eight blocks in a game. The others to do it were Hakeem Olajuwon for Houston in 1983 and David Robinson for Navy in 1986. The blocks also were the most ever by a UConn player in a tournament game.

SAN DIEGO STATE: The Aztecs’ Sweet 16 matchup with defending national champion UConn will mark the fourth time that two teams have faced each other in the tournament a year after meeting in the final. The losing team from the championship won the rematch in one of the three previous instances, when Duke beat UNLV in a 1991 semifinal. Cincinnati won two straight championship games over Ohio State in 1961-62. Florida beat UCLA in the 2006 championship game and in a 2007 semifinal.

ILLINOIS: Illinois has won six in a row, and Terrence Shannon Jr. has scored at least 25 points in each of those games. The 6-foot-6 guard has averaged 30.5 points and has shot 52.8% (56 of 106) from the floor during that stretch. He also shown an uncanny knack for drawing fouls during the streak. Over his last five games, Shannon has gone 51 of 58 on free-throw attempts.

IOWA STATE: Iowa State is allowing just 61.2 points per game to rank fourth among all Division I teams in scoring defense. Since falling 73-65 to Houston on Feb. 19, the Cyclones haven’t allowed any of their last 10 opponents to exceed 65 points. The Cyclones next face Illinois, which ranks ninth in points per game (84.6) and has averaged 91.3 points over its last four contests.

WEST REGION

ALABAMA: Mark Sears and Aaron Estrada were the first set of Division I teammates since 1996-97 to both have at least 410 points, 125 assists, 120 rebounds, 50 3-point baskets and 40 steals during the regular season. Sears is averaging 21.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.7 steals. Estrada has 13.3 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

NORTH CAROLINA: Armando Bacot had seven straight tournament double-doubles and six consecutive tourney games with at least 15 rebounds before he ended up with 18 points and seven boards in a second-round victory over Michigan State. His seven straight NCAA double-doubles matched Tim Duncan and Olajuwon for the NCAA record.

ARIZONA: Arizona’s first-round triumph over Long Beach State marked the 19th time this season the Wildcats had five different players score in double figures. No other Division I team had that many games this season in which five different players had at least 10 points.

CLEMSON: Each of Clemson’s first two tournament opponents has shot below 40% against the Tigers. Clemson won its first-round game by limiting New Mexico to 29.7% shooting, the lowest percentage the Tigers had ever allowed in an NCAA tourney game. Clemson now faces Arizona, which shot 52.8% in its second-round victory over Dayton.

MIDWEST REGION

CREIGHTON: Baylor Scheierman is the first Division I men’s player in history to have at least 2,000 career points, 1,000 rebounds, 500 assists and 300 3-point baskets. Scheierman, who is in his second season at Creighton after playing three seasons at South Dakota State, has 2,208 points, 1,250 rebounds, 578 assists and 352 3-pointers.

TENNESSEE: Tennessee is making its 10th Sweet 16 appearance – including its seventh in the last 18 years – but the Volunteers have never reached the Final Four and earned their lone regional final berth in 2010.

GONZAGA: Gonzaga is in the Sweet 16 for the ninth straight time, the longest active streak of any Division I team. Going back to 1975 – the first year that all teams had to win at least one game to reach the Sweet 16 – the record for consecutive Sweet 16 appearances is owned by North Carolina with 13 straight from 1981-93.

PURDUE: Zach Edey is the first player since Kareen Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor) in 1968 to have at least 50 points and 35 rebounds while shooting 65% from the field in his first two games of an NCAA Tournament. Edey has shot 67.9% (19 of 28) and has totaled 53 points and 35 rebounds in victories over Grambling State and Utah State.

SOUTH REGION

DUKE: Jared McCain has gone 10 of 17 from 3-point range through the first two rounds. In the Blue Devils’ second-round blowout of James Madison, McCain became the first freshman to score at least 30 points without committing a turnover in an NCAA Tournament game since the event expanded to 64 teams in 1985.

HOUSTON: The Cougars showcased their depth by surviving a second-round matchup with Texas A&M in overtime even after four of their five starters fouled out. They became the first team to win an NCAA game while having at least four players foul out since 1987, when UTEP overcame foul trouble to beat Arizona.

MARQUETTE: Marquette owns a 75-29 record under coach Shaka Smart despite posting a negative rebound margin in each of his three seasons. The Golden Eagles have been outrebounded in each of their last eight games but have gone 5-3. They’re getting outrebounded by 3 boards per game this season. The only other Sweet 16 team with a negative rebound margin is North Carolina State (minus-0.8), which faces Marquette on Friday.

NORTH CAROLINA STATE: Mohamed Diarra has 6.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game this season, but he’s averaged 11.7 points and 13.5 rebounds over his last six. Michael O’Connell scored in double digits three times and totaled 14 3-point baskets in 31 regular-season games. He’s reached double figures in six of seven postseason games and has gone 12 of 22 from 3-point range during that stretch.

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