The Houston Texans are expected to trade quarterback Deshaun Watson any day now and the Atlanta Falcons may or may not be a part of that deal, according to a report from ESPN’S Adam Schefter.
“The Falcons have emerged as a sleeper team to acquire Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, league sources tell [Christ Mortensen] and me,” Schefter tweeted on Tuesday, March 15.
“The Falcons join the Panthers, Saints and Browns as teams that have met with, or are interested in, trading for Watson. More to come on ESPN. ”
Schefter also added that Falcons owner Arthur Blank and his family know Watson, who is a Georgia native and served as a ball boy for the team years ago.
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Soon after, Schefter joined ESPN’s SportsCenter where he reiterated the news, “I am told the Falcons are a long shot, but they’re definitely involved in this process to see if there’s a way they can make this happen.”
Watson Sat Out the Entire 2021 Season
Watson,26, requested a trade out of Houston last year but ended up not playing at all amid 22 civil lawsuits and 10 criminal complaints by women alleging sexual assault and misconduct.
A grand jury determined on Friday, March 11 that it would not indict Waston on criminal charges, however, he still has civil suits pending.
“I’m just going to keep fighting to rebuild my name and rebuild my appearance in the community, Watson said following the jury’s decision, via ESPN. “And on the legal side handle what we need to handle. But also ready to get on the field, and prep for that.”
Watson was originally taken 17 overall by the Texans in 2017. In the four seasons that he’s played so far, Watson has thrown for 14,539 yards and 104 touchdowns while completing 67.8 percent of his pass attempts.
Houston’s Asking Price for Watson is Hefty
The Falcons actually acquiring Watson wouldn’t come easy.
Per Jeff Howe of The Athletic, the Texans would like three first-round picks for Watson and have no plans on lowering the price tag.
In fact, they would like a total of five-to-seven assets in return for Watson, but since his criminal investigation is still ongoing, teams can get away with less.
The Falcons currently hold just one draft pick in the first round at No. 8 overall, so it already looks like might be out of this one. However, they do have two more early picks at 43rd and 58th in the second round, which might just be appealing to Houston.
Atlanta would have to take into consideration in making room for Watson’s $35 million-dollar cap hit (per Spotrac), which could mean trading Matt Ryan after already restructuring his current deal.
But, when it’s all said and done, Atlanta could just be inquiring about Watson to drive up the asking price on their rivals since Carolina and New Orleans are both very interested, according to CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora who reported:
“Rival GM’s are not buying Atlanta as a legit suitor for Deshaun Watson but perhaps will prove em wrong. Watson been available for a year Atlanta told teams would not trade Matt Ryan then reworked deal again. With NO and CAR in deep, industry reading this as attempt to drive price”
Stay tuned to see what happens next…
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Falcons Emerge as ‘Sleeper Team’ to Acquire Texans’ QB: Report