Deshaun Watson’s nasty eye injury illustrates absurdity of game-winning TD: ‘I kind of threw it blind'

Deshaun Watson evidently is better with no eyes than most NFL quarterbacks are with two eyes.

Seriously — the Texans quarterback got kicked in the eye and, a couple seconds later, threw the game-winning touchdown pass in the Texans' 27-24 victory over the Raiders on Sunday. Who else does that?

WATCH: Full Texans vs. Raiders highlights

The play occurred with 6:26 remaining in the fourth quarter. Watson, on a first-and-goal with his team down four points, dropped back to pass but had to step high into the pocket when left tackle Chris Clark got beat by Raiders pass-rusher Arden Key. Watson somehow managed to evade Key, but in the process, Key's foot struck Watson in the face.

Didn't matter. Watson, seemingly while adjusting his helmet after getting kicked, found Darren Fells for a 9-yard touchdown.

Watson, busted eye and all, was asked after the game to explain what he saw — or didn't see — when he buried the Raiders.

"I was just trying to make a play and try to spin (Key) off," Watson

"I kind of threw it blind."@deshaunwatson discusses his game-winning TD pass. pic.twitter.com/XlOddgaKxD

— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) October 28, 2019 " target="_blank">explained. "When I (spun) him, his leg kind of came up and, I'm not sure where it hit; it just hit my helmet, that's all I remember. Eye went shut, seen (Fells) kind of going to my right. Had to readjust my helmet. And then (the other) eye was kind of going shut, too, so I kind of threw it blind. But I kind of assumed where he was going and kind of adjusted and let my arm guide it.

"I didn't even see the play until after the game. I just kind of laid there and heard the crowd go crazy and knew we scored."

Given that context, watch the play again.

Sorry, one more time …

HOW did Deshaun Watson pull this off? pic.twitter.com/R8y7mkhaD7

— Sporting News (@sportingnews) October 28, 2019

"He wills it out of his team," Raiders coach Jon Gruden said of Watson, via The Athletic. "He makes something out of nothing … it’s like going against Michael Jordan.”

Indeed, there's not much else Oakland could have done on the play. Key did his job and got to the QB. The coverage on Fells was sound, too.

The Raiders' inability to stop Watson was the key to Sunday's game as a whole, not just on the game-winning TD. The 24-year-old passer completed 27 of 39 attempts for 279 yards, with three TDs, no picks and a rating of 115.2. He added 10 carries for 46 yards on the ground.

The performance was punctuated by a touchdown pass he threw while blind. Now everyone can see Watson is a legit NFL MVP candidate.