Don’t pencil in Deshaun Watson to the Pittsburgh Steelers this offseason.
Yes, the Steelers need a new quarterback with Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, but it looks unlikely they’ll pursue Watson.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said as much on Sunday on SportsCenter after the Steelers hired Brian Flores. Flores will be a senior defensive assistant/linebackers coach under Mike Tomlin.
“In the offseason and leading up to the trade deadline last year, sort of the worst kept secret was that Deshaun Watson had interest in playing for Brian Flores in Miami, but that ship has sort of sailed as Miami has transitioned to Mike McDaniel and they’re going to stick with Tua Tagovailoa,” Fowler said. “With the Steelers and what they do at quarterback, that’ll be a Mike Tomlin call, a GM Kevin Colbert call, and then the eventual new GM, which should be hired before the draft. They would decide if they go for a player such as Watson and there’s still zero clarity here on his case.”
“He was supposed to have a deposition on the case over the sexual assault allegations next week, (but) I’m told that could be postponed. There’s a criminal investigation that’s still not complete at this point. There are really two windows for trade talk to potentially intensify — you’ve got free agency and then the draft. After that, it’s pretty uncertain.”
Based on Fowler’s reporting, the Steelers may turn their attention towards the NFL Draft or pursue another free agent.
It’s a move that the Steelers will have to get right as this is the first time they’ve needed a new starter in 18 years.
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