Yes, Deshaun Watson Still Wants To Be Traded
Deshaun Watson reportedly won't attend organized team activities as Phase 3 of the offseason program begins this week, and yes, he still wants out of Houston.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that the Houston Texans star quarterback won’t attend OTAs and still wants to be traded.
The fifth-year Texans quarterback initially requested a trade from the team in January before he was accused of sexual assault and misconduct during massage sessions in 22 separate lawsuits filed in March and April, Around the NFL reports.
The QB and his legal team have denied the allegations related to the lawsuits in recent court records, and an “agreed docket control order” in the cases shows the legal battle will begin after the 2021-2022 season concludes.
Last week, the quarterback shared a series of videos to his Instagram story, marking his first social media appearance since his initial response to multiple allegations of sexual misconduct in March.
Although his civil lawsuit battles may be on hold for now, Watson could be placed on the NFL Commissioner’s Exempt List. The Houston Police Department has also begun an investigation into the matter. Both the Exempt List and the criminal investigation are independent of the 22 civil lawsuits.
Watson, who turns 26 in September, led the league with 4,823 passing yards in 2020, marking a new career-high. He set new personal records with 33 passing touchdowns and a 70.2% completion rate, but with his ongoing legal situation, it’s unclear whether a team would trade for him and what he would be worth.
OutKick’s Matt Loede reports about the possibility of Watson being traded this offseason prior to the start of camp. It remains one of the hot topics around the NFL.
“Three teams that repeatedly came up in conversations with multiple executives were the Washington Football Team and Las Vegas Raiders, and Miami Dolphins as potential destinations for Watson,” FanSided’s Matt Lombardo said.
To read more of OutKick’s coverage on this topic, click here.