AFC South 2020 preview: The homegrown player on a rookie contract who's vital for each team's success

Let's take a look at four young players who might just shape the landscape of the AFC South

The Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers found themselves on top of the NFL world in 2019, and much of their success can be credited to their young talent. Despite the hype free agency creates, real dynasties are made through the draft. The Chiefs' decision to trade up in 2017 to select quarterback Patrick Mahomes was one of the best moves in recent memory, former fifth-round pick Tyreek Hill is one of the most versatile wideouts in the league and former third-round pick Travis Kelce has established himself as one of the most talented tight ends in the league. For the 49ers, Nick Bosa, George Kittle, DeForest Buckner and Arik Armstead were all former draft picks who also made major impacts on the field during San Francisco's 13-3 campaign last season. 

The AFC South as a whole is trying to build contenders through the draft as well, and they have found some relative success as of late. The Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans have made recent playoff appearances thanks to their first-round quarterback selections, the Tennessee Titans' former second-round pick at running back carried the entire team to the AFC Championship Game last year and the Jacksonville Jaguars ... well, they are still rebuilding. That young talent is what makes the difference in the NFL, however, and those rookie contracts are incredibly beneficial for a franchise before they have to reset the market just to keep their star. 

Each one of the four AFC South teams possess a player still on his rookie contract that is absolutely vital for their success moving forward. Some may be obvious while some might surprise you in 2020. Let's take a look at a homegrown player on each AFC South team that will help each respective franchise reach their full potential. 

Houston Texans

Drafted: No. 12 in 2017

This one is obvious, but the 2020 season is going to probably be the most important year for Deshaun Watson moving forward. Yes, the Texans have engaged in "very preliminary" discussions on a contract extension with their up-and-coming star, but it's going to be interesting to see how he will be able to operate without his former top wideout in DeAndre Hopkins, who was traded to the Arizona Cardinals this offseason. According to Bill Barnwell of ESPN, Watson has just nine career dropbacks without Hopkins in the lineup. Watson's top targets are now Brandin Cooks, Will Fuller (who is a mainstay on the injury report) and Kenny Stills. It's clear that Watson is the franchise quarterback for the Texans; he's taken Houston to the postseason two out of the three years he's been in the league. What's even more clear, however, is that the Texans can only go as far as Watson takes them. 

Watson already owns over a dozen NFL records and several Texans franchise records. According to Pro Football Focus, Watson was the fourth highest-graded second-year quarterback since 2015. He's going to get his money, but it's going to speak volumes if he can lead this Texans team to the postseason without his former No. 1 weapon. Watson is someone many other general managers would like on their team, but it will be interesting to see what he's capable of without one of the best wideouts in the game. Is he a star, or a superstar?

Indianapolis Colts

Drafted: No. 36 in 2018

The No. 36 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of South Carolina State led the NFL with 163 combined tackles and also ranked in the top 10 among rookies in tackles for loss, sacks, passes defensed, interceptions, forced fumbles and fumble recoveries. He missed three games due to a concussion in 2019, but still recorded 121 combined tackles, five interceptions and seven tackles for loss -- which warranted his first Pro Bowl bid.

Whether it was leading the team in tackles, getting to the quarterback or forcing turnovers via fumble, interception or even blocked field goal, Darius Leonard has proven he's a star. Leonard has the capability moving forward to captain a defense like Ray Lewis did for the Baltimore Ravens. The Colts did a great job surrounding new quarterback Philip Rivers with weapons in the 2020 NFL Draft, but defense still wins championships, and virtually every NFL team would love to have Leonard lining up as a starting linebacker. 

Jacksonville Jaguars

Drafted: No. 178 in 2019

No one is expecting the Jaguars to compete for a Super Bowl in 2020, but they do have some young, intriguing pieces on both sides of the ball. Jacksonville had an underrated draft by selecting cornerback C.J. Henderson out Florida, pass rusher K'Lavon Chaisson out of LSU and Colorado wideout Laviska Shenault Jr. with their first three picks. It's fair to expect these three players to make an immediate impact this season, but let's focus on the core that Jacksonville has established up to this point. D.J. Chark is a legitimate star in the making, there's no doubt about it, but the quarterback position is the most important in football.

Former sixth-round pick Gardner Minshew completed 60.6 percent of his passes for 3,271 yards, 21 touchdowns and six interceptions in 14 games played. He went 6-6 as a starter, which is impressive considering the Jaguars went 6-10 last season. Minshew was exciting in the pocket, dangerous in the open field and a capable thrower downfield. When it comes to his potential, he definitely showed some promise during his rookie season. Some believe he's a low-end starter and some believe he's a Nick Foles-like backup. It's too early to tell, but the fact that this rookie backup stepped up in his first-ever NFL game and played much better than anyone could expect says something. 

The doubters do have one thing pinned correctly, however. This year, Minshew will be under a microscope. Foles has been traded away and general manager Dave Caldwell wants to see if this is truly the signal-caller they want under center as they continue to rebuild. What does a successful season for Minshew look like? Maybe a 7-9 record with career-highs all across the board would suffice. The main thing is that Jaguars brass wants to see the same exciting quarterback that started in each game Jacksonville won last year, and see clear signs that he's improving. The Jaguars roster is not very impressive on paper, but if Minshew can improve on a 6-10 record from last year, I would be hopeful for the future. 

Tennessee Titans

Drafted: No. 51 in 2019

For the first time since maybe Derrick Mason, the Titans appear to have a legitimate No. 1 wide receiver. Former Ole Miss star A.J. Brown caught 52 passes for 1,051 yards and eight touchdowns during his rookie season in 2019. He became the only player in the Super Bowl era to record over 1,000 receiving yards while averaging over 20 yards per reception in his rookie season, per NFL Research. Brown flashed his potential in his very first NFL regular-season game. During the 43-13 win over the Cleveland Browns, Brown caught three passes for 100 yards, making him the first Titan/Oiler since Sid Banks in 1964 to record at least 100 yards in his first career game with the team, according to The Tennessean. It would be the first of five 100-yard games for Brown during the 2019 season. 

Brown has this unique combination of size and speed that gives him the ability to be a home-run hitter. At times last season, he looked like Julio Jones in the open field. The Titans have Derrick Henry to handle the ground work and now have Brown as a threat in the receiving game. It will be interesting to see if this team can reach the conference championship game again this season.