The Houston Texans were adamant that they would not trade Deshaun Watson earlier this offseason, but that was before the star quarterback was accused of sexual assault by more than 20 women. Now, the bigger question is whether any teams will be interested if the Texans change their stance. One NFL insider believes there is still a strong chance Watson is moved.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk spoke about the Watson situation during an appearance on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Friday. He was asked if the Texans would be ready to turn things over to Tyrod Taylor and rookie Davis Mills if Watson settles the civil lawsuits against him and does not face criminal charges. Florio said he is confident that will be the case.
“I know it’ll happen. The moment these cases are settled, if it happens, that’s when the land rush begins for the Deshaun Watson contract,” Florio said. “The Texans may still get a decent return. … If you get two, three, four teams at the table, the value gets pumped back into this potential trade.”
You can hear Florio’s full thoughts on the topic below:
Should #Texans QB Deshaun Watson settle with his accusers, could his trade market re-heat back up? And who would be back in the mix?@ProFootballTalk laid it out: pic.twitter.com/Nnk08YtzYE
— Rich Eisen Show (@RichEisenShow) May 14, 2021
Before the sexual assault allegations, the asking price for Watson was reportedly two first-round picks and a lot more. It’s unclear if teams would still be willing to offer that much given how much Watson’s reputation has been tarnished, but we know winning is oftentimes all that matters in the NFL. He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the league and still just 25.
We know of one NFC team that may still have interest in Watson even amid the sexual assault scandal. If the cases are settled, Florio thinks that team will have plenty of competition.
