Bill O'Brien says Deshaun Watson ahead of schedule from torn ACL

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Houston Texans head coach Bill O'Brien reiterated what he previously said at the NFL combine, noting Tuesday morning that quarterback Deshaun Watson's recovery from a torn right ACL is progressing well.

"Deshaun's ahead of schedule, but there's still a lot of work," O'Brien said at the AFC coaches breakfast. "He has a great idea how he feels and how his knee is. He knows the stages he needs to get back on the field."

Watson, who injured his right knee in a Nov. 2 practice, is expected to be ready for the start of training camp in late July. As for what he might be able to do on the field in the offseason program, O'Brien highlighted Tuesday how those answers will come in time because the program is a three-phase process.

Per NFL rules, the first two weeks of the offseason program are strength and conditioning, the middle three weeks are limited on-field workouts with individual instruction/drills, and then the final four weeks include organized team activities with 7-on-7, 9-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills. There is no live contact allowed in the offseason program.

The Texans can start their offseason program April 16.

"I know he's ahead of schedule," O'Brien said. "He's been in there every day working hard. He hurt the other knee in college, so he has a real good idea about how to go about the rehab. He knows the different stages, the different goals he has to meet along the way. I believe that he feel real good about where he is right now. And then we'll just take it one day at a time during the offseason program because it's a nine-week program, so the first two weeks we're not really doing anything on the field. And then the next three weeks you can do a little bit on the field. And then the last four weeks is when you've really got to see ... that's when you're practicing. Which is OTAs with no pads on. So maybe he'll be able to do something there. But we're not in a rush on that. But I do think there's going to be some things he can do throwing-wise. Probably not in team drills, but maybe he can do some 7-on-7, some of our passing drills, to continue to work on the timing, with receivers especially."

Watson, the Texans' 2017 first-round pick, generated excitement last season once he was elevated to a starting role. In six starts, he was 126-of-204 for 1,699 yards, with 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions, while adding 36 rushes for 269 yards and two touchdowns.

How Watson builds off his rookie season as he recovers from the torn ACL is naturally critical for the Texans.

"Last year is behind us. We're starting over this season, starting from scratch. I have great confidence in him," O'Brien said Tuesday morning. "He's got great talent and we design our offense around his strengths."

O'Brien also saidJ.J. Watt'srehab from a broken leg is going well and thinks he'll be back at "full-strength" this season.

"J.J. [Watt] is doing really well," O'Brien said. "J.J. has a great attitude. He's a very, very positive guy. He's been in a great mood the whole offseason about where he's at. Obviously he's working very hard. Just like I've always said about J.J., I would just tell you that watching him and seeing him in the building every day, I would never bet against J.J. Watt.

"J.J. Watt is a generational player in this league and he'll be back to full-strength. And I just watch the way he is, and that's why I feel so good about him. He's very positive about where he's at. He knows exactly what he needs to do to get back. I think it's a little bit different than some other injury that he had. He just has a real good idea of where he's at and what he needs to do to get back. He's working very, very hard."

ESPN's Sarah Barshop contributed to this report.