A report from Pro Football Talk came out on Thursday morning that showed Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson is considering asking for a trade this offseason, as growing frustration has finally reached a boiling point this year.
Every ear in the Washington Football organization should have just perked up with maximum interest.
Washington is arguably one good QB away from being a serious contender, especially considering the dominant defensive line that they possess, and the leeway that can bring them. Watson isn’t just a good QB, but a great QB; arguably a top-5 player in the NFL. If he were to be placed on the current roster in Washington, the burgundy & gold suddenly become a serious threat in the NFC. Here is the report from PFT:
Rumors already are circulating, and we’ve already heard them from multiple different people, that Watson has quietly broached with teammates the possibility of requesting a trade. If that’s happening, it may just be a strategic effort to ensure his views are respected by ownership. Regardless, it raises the stakes and crosses a bridge and potentially sets the foundation for Watson eventually to decide that he’d like to continue his career elsewhere.
A trade request would not come as a surprise from Watson, seeing as the ownership and coaching in Houston has done just about everything they can to hinder his growth. A couple of years ago they traded nearly all of their draft capital away for Laremy Tunsil, a left tackle who’s addition to the team hasn’t resulted in success, and earlier this year, the team traded away DeAndre Hopkins, an All-Pro wide receiver, getting back a middling running back and some assets in return. It’s easy to see why Watson would be frustrated.
Of course, he did sign a new contract with the Texans, and trading him away would leave a cap charge of $21.6 million, according to the report, but the draft picks Houston would receive in return for their star QB more than justifies that.
So that brings us to this question — what would it take to land Deshaun? Well, it’s going to be expensive, but hopefully worth it. No player-for-player trade will be enough, so Washington would have to throw in draft picks — something along the lines of multiple first-rounders, and maybe a couple of mid-rounders — to go along with a highly-respectable player at a position of need for Houston. Say, DL Matt Ioannidis?
When you add all of this up, it seems like a ton to give up for a single player, but you have to remember how electric Watson is. With a solid team around him, he can easily be a top-3 quarterback in the NFL and paired with a top-5 defense, his team becomes a true Super Bowl contender. None of this happens unless he asks to be traded and unless the Texans actually grant that request, but the first domino in that long line of evens fell on Thursday morning, so it’s worth bringing up.
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