Watson is among the Texans' key players who sat out Thursday's preseason opener against the Packers, John McClain of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Watson appeared in all 16 of the Houston's regular-season games last year, but his injury history prior to that offers the team incentive to limit his exposure to unnecessary preseason contact. The Texans' franchise-signal caller got some good news Thursday, when the team traded for running back Duke Johnson, a talented pass-catcher, who gives Watson another legitimate playmaker to work with this coming season.