The Cleveland Browns ultimately won the Deshaun Watson sweepstakes, with at least three other teams trying and failing to land the quarterback. The significant interest did not stop there, at least according to Houston Texans GM Nick Caserio.
Caserio said the Texans had let other teams approach them about Watson and then whittled down the list of serious suitors based on whether they were willing to give up enough from Houston’s perspective. Caserio said there were “a few more” teams than publicly reported that the Texans took seriously.
“I think there was a certain threshold that I had established in order to make it a legitimate discussion, and if we got to that point then we could engage further,” Caserio said, via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “I don’t want to get into the exact number, but there was a few more, however many teams than what everybody was reporting towards the end.”
We know that in addition to the Browns, the New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, and Carolina Panthers sought to acquire Watson. The Indianapolis Colts also need a quarterback, but the Texans were never going to entertain trading Watson to a division rival. They are moving on to another quarterback instead, it would appear.
There are not a ton of quarterback-needy teams other than those already reported, but some teams like the Browns may have sought upgrades even though they had a decent quarterback already. We may never know who else was in the running, if they seriously were.
Photo: Jan 23, 2020; Kissimmee, Florida, USA; Houston Texans quarterback DeShaun Watson (4) during AFC practice at ESPN Wide World of Sports. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
