If I am being honest, the NFL trade deadline doesn’t get me all excited and hot and bothered like the MLB trade deadline does. In baseball, you frequently see big stars going from team to team and you almost always get some last-minute blockbusters that seem to squeak in just before the deadline. In the NFL, the trade deadline usually comes and goes like a fart in the wind.
This year, however, we had a few surprising moves. One that surprised me was the Rams trading for Denver’s all-pro pass rusher Von Miller, making an already stellar defense a dang monster. RIP to all the offenses who have to face the gauntlet of Miller, Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey. After losing tight end Maxx Williams on October 10th, it was no surprise that Arizona wanted a tight end - what was surprising is that they traded for Eagles TE Zach Ertz. Maybe it’s because I have family in Philly, but I couldn’t imagine Ertz playing anywhere else. The other surprise move was the Saints trading for Mark Ingram, bringing back a fan-favorite who walked away in free agency last year.
One move (or lack thereof) that didn’t surprise me was Houston not trading franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson. Back in January, Watson requested a trade because he didn’t like the process Houston went through in hiring their new GM, Nick Caserio. I mean, I didn’t like that I couldn’t interview my new boss before she was hired, but hey, I can’t request a trade to another firm. Watson isn’t Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers - he doesn’t get to have a say in front office operations. Of course, it’s my opinion players probably shouldn’t have a big say in front office operations, but still. Watson was being a grumpy bear and could see that his team in 2021 wouldn’t be good. And keep this in mind: Watson asking for a trade came less than six month after signing a 4-year extension that would’ve kept him in Houston for the cool price of $156 million bucks.
Then came March.
March is when things started to fall apart for Watson when the first of 23 lawsuits were filed against the QB, all accusing him of sexual assault and inappropriate sexual behavior. The lawsuits were filed by trainers and massage therapists who claimed Watson forced them to touch his privates and also exposed himself while he was, um, excited. There are currently 22 active suits against Watson and the NFL is conducting its own investigation.
It’s icky. The whole situation is icky.
Watson continues to deny he’s done anything wrong, but he has yet to suit up for a game this season. The Texans, arguably one of the worst teams in football this year, have kept their expensive, star QB on the bench. But I’m not surprised; any time Watson is on the bench, that’s fewer minutes the NFL has to deal with the “why are they letting him play, he’s an accused sexual predator!” chatter. And as we all know, the NFL is always trying to save face, so having a QB in this much legal trouble playing in games is simply not a good look. Can you imagine having to watch color commentators trying to seriously dissect his game with the allegations buzzing in the background? “Gee, Jim, Watson just doesn’t look like himself today, maybe it’s because he’s being sued by 22 women! Or maybe it’s because his O-Line is bad! Who knows!”
Despite the ongoing lawsuits, there were still many teams this year who were in talks to trade for Watson, including the Dolphins, Panthers and the Eagles. The Dolphins were always thought to be the most serious team and appeared to be willing to overlook the pending lawsuits against Watson. There is also a lot of speculation that the Dolphins are unhappy with their second-year starter Tua Tagovailoa, which is why Watson seemed to be a fit for the team. As a Bama fan, I love Tua and I think it’s preposterous that the Dolphins are souring on him so early into his career. What I find even more preposterous is that they would want to consider trading for Watson, who may not have even been able to play if he was traded. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is still weighing whether or not Watson should go on the Commissioner’s Exempt list. From The Athletic:
“There obviously are other legal approaches that are being made, either through the civil cases,” Goodell said at the NFL owners meetings on Tuesday. “Obviously the police have been investigating also. We don’t have all the access to that information at this point in time, and we pride ourselves on not interfering in that, being as cooperative as we can to make sure we get all the facts.
“But I think that process is still ongoing, and until that process isn’t ongoing and we have enough data and enough information to be able to make a determination of whether he should go on commissioner exempt, we don’t feel we have that necessary information at this point.”
So….yeah.
The trade deadline and came and went and Watson is still with the Texans. He’s still a very expensive bench warmer. For the Texans, they are likely hoping that Watson’s legal “situation” will be resolved during the off-season and they can get more on their return. Obviously with the pending legal issues, the Texans would likely only get a dime on the dollar for Watson, but if this legal situation resolves in Watson’s favor and he can play right away, teams would be willing to trade more. For new GM Nick Caserio, he will want to get as much as he can in return for Watson and if there are lawsuits pending and a real possibility Watson will spend time on the Exempt list and/or suspended, the team won’t be able to get the return they are seeking. The Dolphins did their due diligence with Watson, including having owner Steven Ross meeting with Deshaun personally on Monday before the deadline. Clearly, he didn’t like what he heard from Watson or else Watson would be in a Dolphins uniform on Sunday. So perhaps the Dolphins know more about the pending legal stuff than we do, but it doesn’t change the fact that they were dead serious about trading for Watson in the first place. It’s gross and yucky.
So, for now, Watson is still the Texans’ problem. I’m sure some team will trade for him this off-season, but I still won’t like it. I am for due diligence and allowing the legal system to play out, but I’m quickly losing patience for the NFL allowing men like Watson to continue playing. 22 active lawsuits isn’t nothing; that’s A LOT of women who are claiming Watson sexually assaulted them. So sure, let’s wait until the legal system sifts through this, but the NFL doesn’t have to sit on its hands. There are plenty of non-sexual assault-y guys who could be on rosters, but I’m not going to hold my breath. As long as the NFL makes money, these kind of problem players will always have jobs.
And NFL will still try to sell me pink shit and tell me they care about women.