Two ex-GMs on what Texans should do if Watson doesn’t budge. And how Dolphins factor in
The Houston Texans, at this point, say they have no interest in acquiescing to Deshaun Watson’s trade demand and instead will try to repair their relationship. Ultimately, a trade appears more likely than not.
So what should the Texans do if Watson refuses all of the organization’s attempts to reconcile and conveys that he’s simply not going to report this season? With five years left on his contract, should the Texans take the nuclear approach by calling his bluff and allowing him to sit out for a season or potentially longer? And how do the Dolphins figure in?
Two veteran former general managers weighed in on what they would do if they were Texans GM Nick Caserio and addressed how the Dolphins factor in:
▪ Mike Tannenbaum, the former Dolphins vice president/football operations and now an ESPN analyst, told ESPN’s Mike Greenberg that he would say precisely this to Watson and his agent, David Mulugheta, if he still insists on leaving after attempts by the Texans for a reconciliation:
“What I’m going to say to Deshaun Watson and his agent at that point is, ‘You have to do what’s in your best interests, we have to do what’s in our best interests. And if we don’t get what we believe is fair market value, apparently you’re going to retire. We understand you want to be traded. We’re disappointed. We’re going to [try to] do that. But if we don’t get what we want as an organization, we’re not just going to give you away. Then you don’t have to play and we’ll move forward.’”
Tannenbaum said if he were Caserio and if Watson again made clear he’s simply not going to be a part of the Texans, “I’m looking for three No. 1 picks and a good young player. He’s too good, he’s under contract for five years, 25 years old. I want three No. 1 picks and a good player and I want the whole world to know that.”
Tannenbaum said if he still worked for the Dolphins — and if the Texans gave him permission to talk to Watson as a precursor to advanced trade talks — he would say this:
“Come to Miami. We have great weather. You will practice and play on grass which is very important from a health and safety standpoint. We have no state income tax; some of those Northeast states do, which is a material difference.
“You’re from this part of the country so you can get friends and family to the games a lot easier. You have an owner, Steve Ross, who’s done a lot of things in the community. He started a foundation called RISE which supports a lot of players in terms of social justice initiatives. He has a great record on that. From a football standpoint, you have a really good defense. On offense, there are some pieces there but [you] could bring it to a whole other level.’”
Tannenbaum said Watson “can really be the missing piece for Miami. He’s a perfect fit for them.”
▪ Casserly, now an NFL Network analyst, said if he were in Caserio’s shoes, “you’ve got to try to to meet with the player” and tell him everything Houston has to offer, including well-regarded new quarterback coach Pep Hamilton.
But Casserly is resigned to this not working out.
“I think this is going to end up as a trade,” Casserly said, adding that the Texans then must decide whether to call his bluff and see if he will really sit out a year instead of succumbing to his trade demand.
From Houston’s standpoint, “are you willing to sit out a year as an organization?” Casserly asked. “If you’re going to say that, go get a quarterback right now because you may have to do that in this situation. Players have sat out a year. Get ready for your disaster plan if you are going to stick to it.”
The price Casserly set for Houston isn’t quite as high as the one Tannenbaum set and the one that ultimately might be necessary to acquire him.
“The minimum [trade return] has to be two ones and two twos,” Casserly said. “A second two could be a player [instead], in other words, three picks and a young starting player you can build upon.”
Casserly said Houston officials must “stay out of the media,” adding that last Friday’s news conference in which Caserio said he has “zero interest” in trading Watson must “be your last discussion ever about Deshaun Watson in the media. Period.”
Casserly said he would then meet with Mulugheta and convey two things: “A, we’re not going to be in the media [discussing this]. And two, we’re never going to trade him to Indianapolis so don’t come back here and say you want to go to Indianapolis because then he is going to retire as a Texan right now. We’re not going to put him in the [same] division.”
As for Watson’s no-trade clause, Casserly was dumbfounded why Houston agreed to that. “You never, ever give the player leverage in contracts,” said Casserly — the former Washington and Houston general manager.
“I never did it and most general managers never do. He’s got leverage here. So you’re going to have to work around that a little bit.”
With regard to the Dolphins, Casserly said: “They’ve got a lot of picks. Do you like Tua [Tagovailoa]? There’s a report in Houston they don’t like Tua. OK, Tua’s not part of the deal. The question you are going to have to answer with Houston is if they don’t give you that top pick [third overall] are you still going to make the deal.” That seems unlikely that Houston would make a trade with Miami if the No. 3 pick isn’t included.
Casserly could justify a Miami trade - from Watson’s, Houston’s and Miami’s perspective. But a Jets trade?
“He wants to go to a winner [and the] Jets have a lot of picks but they’re in a total rebuild,” Casserly said. “But guess who else is in a rebuild: the Houston Texans. With this great player, they won four games. If they don’t have him, maybe they win four games, maybe they don’t. It’s two or three years before this team will be a representative team to be in the playoffs.”
Casserly predicts that not only will Watson be traded, but that defensive star J.J. Watt will ask for a trade, too.
Here’s my Wednesday piece with Ryan Fitzpatrick’s comments today about his future, Jimmy Johnson assessing Tua and some exclusive media news.
Here’s the Wednesday debut of my Marlins column with Craig Mish, with a bunch of nuggets.
This story was originally published February 2, 2021 at 6:02 PM.
