I have been one that has held firm in my belief that Deshaun Watson wouldn’t be traded this year. Now, if that boiled down to the Texans stubbornness or the legal issues surround him, I did not know, but I just felt he’d somehow not be moved…yet.
Well, things have changed – including the report that the Texans are now at least “listening” to offers for him. Last night on NFL Network, Tom Pelissero reported that there were “multiple teams” interested in trading for him DESPITE the on-going legal issues and uncertainty surround his availability for the 2021 season and beyond.
Some of those teams rumored to be interested are the Broncos, Eagles and Raiders.
But what if Ron Rivera shocked the world and made a deal the Texans couldn’t refuse?
It’s true that Watson has a no-trade clause in his contract. It’s also true that beggars can’t be choosers, and if he’s that adamant about getting out of Houston, he may be more open to going just about ANYWHERE.
The Texans will certainly be all about getting the best deal they can for a player in his prime who most consider to be a top five quarterback in the league. I’m sure they would also prefer to send him to the NFC if that opportunity were to present itself as favorable to them.
The Eagles are a team who just traded Carson Wentz to the Colts, and have the ammo from that trade, plus the one they made on draft day with the Dolphins, to offer a nice bounty of picks for Watson. There are two issue here; 1)They only have around $3.5M in cap space (Watson has a cap hit of $16M in 2021 and $40M in 2022); and 2)They have a lot of holes on that team that those 2022 draft picks (potentially three first rounders), could help fill.
The Eagles can certainly get creative and make more cap space if they traded for Watson, or even work out a deal where the Texans absorbed some of his 2021 salary. They could even re-work his current deal to take some of that base and turn it into a signing bonus to help make his contract more manageable down the road.
But what if the Sleeping Giant that lies in Washington rose up and put a deal on the table for the Pro Bowl quarterback?
What could that potential deal look like?
Washington Deal for Watson
Scenario 1:
– 2022 1st and 2nd
– 2023 1st and 2nd
– Daron Payne
Scenario 2:
– 2022 1st and 2nd
– 2023 1st
– Montez Sweat
There is no doubt the Texans need help on the defensive side of the football. Their D ranked in the bottom on the NFL in most major statistical categories in 2020. In both of these scenarios, the Football Team gives up multiple high picks, and a rising defensive stalwart, in exchange for a top five NFL quarterback.
Some say high draft picks are gold, but they always carry with them the unknown. With both players I presented in the above scenarios, the Texans get a KNOWN commodity in their prime on a rookie contract who can immediately help their porous defense.
The defensive front four is the strength of Washington’s football team, so if a player were to be added, this would be the area The Football Team could afford to do so without a ton of negative impact to the team.
Adding Watson to this football team would immediately turn Washington into a contender. The issue is sacrificing first and second round picks over the next two years, AND trading away an impact defender.
I don’t think we will be in the Watson sweepstakes, but if we did, and offered the Texans one of the packages above, how would you feel?
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