When the Houston Texans traded up from No. 25 to No. 12 in the 2017 NFL Draft, surrendering a second first-round pick in the process in order to acquire the services of former Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson, it sure seemed like they were leaping up the draft board to select their new starting quarterback. Not so fast, according to longtime Texans bear writer John McClain of the Houston Chronicle.

Here's what McClain said on Pro Football Talk's PFT Live, as it relates to the competition between Watson and third-year QB Tom Savage:

"…there is no true competition. Savage is the starter, and he'll remain the starter until injured or proven ineffective during the regular season. So while G.M. Rick Smith has said Watson will compete for the job, it won't be the typical competition that entails the splitting of first-team reps with a winner announced before Week One."

That's certainly an unexpected development.

Savage, drafted by the Texans in the fourth round of the 2014 draft, has been the team's backup or No. 3 QB for the past three years. He has thrown 92 passes in his career, completing 56 of them for 588 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. The Texans went 1-1 in his two starts last season, though the loss came after Savage was knocked out with a concussion early in the contest.

It's not exactly the largest sample size on which to judge his potential, but the performance he put forth was also not necessarily awe-inspiring. It seems fairly clear that Watson is the team's quarterback of the future either way (you don't give up two first-round picks to take a quarterback that you never plan to play), so even if Savage does begin the year as the team's starter, it seems unlikely that he finishes the season in the role, no matter what gets reported in May.