It feels as though owner David Tepper and his Carolina Panthers will be in on this Deshaun Watson ordeal until the bitter end—even if Deshaun Watson still isn’t in on them.
According to ESPN senior NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler, the Houston Texans quarterback has started to map out possible landing spots for the new campaign. Fowler notes two teams in particular, neither of which are the extremely desperate Panthers.
“The Texans quarterback, who spent the 2021 season on the team’s active roster but did not play, has begun evaluating potential fits for his services in 2022, with the Buccaneers and Vikings among teams on his radar,” he writes.
“One source noted that Watson — who has a no-trade clause — is still early in the evaluation process, but he’s looking for the right blend of offensive system, coaching, talent and, most importantly, the chance to win.”
The former of those two squads, as a result of Tom Brady’s retirement, is certainly in the market for a new passer. Plus, given their ready-to-win roster and quarterback-friendly head coach in Bruce Arians, Tampa Bay may be quite appealing to the three-time Pro Bowler.
Minnesota, on the other hand, may not be as open to Watson. Vikings new head coach Kevin O’Connell was the former quarterbacks coach for the team’s current starter in Kirk Cousins, who’s set to earn $45 million for the upcoming season, and may look to rekindle some of what they had in Washington.
Regardless, Carolina remains off Watson’s wishlist—at least reportedly—which was basically the case this past year.
“Watson preferred the Dolphins before last November’s trade deadline,
according to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen, but talks didn’t result in a deal, and
Miami appears committed to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa playing under new
coach Mike McDaniel,” Fowler added.
Also, in a quite pertinent detail, the 22 lawsuits alleging Watson of sexual misconduct remain unresolved to this point. So all this talk about a legally-embattled player looking to pick and choose his spots seems, well, rather odd and untimely at the moment anyway.
