For the third time in as many seasons, Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans will face Bill Belichick’s New England Patriots.

Over the past three seasons, Belichick has seen the growth in Watson, from bright-eyed rookie to budding star to NFL superstar. Before their Week 13 matchup, the legendary coach sees No. 4 as a threat to their 10-1 record.

“Deshaun’s a very talented player, certainly one of the top players in the league at his position that we’ve faced,” Belchick told the Houston media in a conference call Tuesday. “Does a great job on the deep ball, has very good touch and accuracy, is a good decision maker, obviously very athletic kid that can do a lot.”

Watson has thrown for 2,899 yards, 20 touchdowns and seven interceptions on a 69% completion rate, good for his career-high 103.4 passer rating, along with five rushing touchdowns and 301 rushing yards.

Belichick lauds Watson’s deep ball prowess, and for good reason. According to Player Profiler, he is second in the NFL in deep-ball attempts (62) and seventh in deep-ball accuracy (43.5%).

Like the only quarterback to defeat the Patriots in 2019, Lamar Jackson, Watson posses as a threat to New England for more than his arm. He can run. Combine the two, and you have a dual-threat able to succeed in both facets of the game.

“He’s a very good passer, can extend plays and make throws out of pocket, make throws in the pocket, and if he has to run the ball to convert a third down, he certainly is capable of doing that, and he’s a hard guy to tackle,” Belichick said. “I’ve been very impressed with his downfield passing ability and decision making and accuracy on third down.”

Watson did not defeat New England in his two tries doing so. In the first attempt, he took the Patriots to the brink of defeat in Foxborough, losing 36-33 in his second career start. In the second, he struggled in a season-opener while trying to shake the rust off of tearing an ACL.

On Sunday, at 7:20 p.m. CT, Watson will get his third crack at defeating Belichick. If the Patriots coach’s scouting report is correct, he will give them a fight worth watching on prime time TV.