Deshaun Watson Traded to Cleveland (3FRPs)

[ET80]

So... Let's hope that this situation in civil court resolves itself, Watson plays a few games to keep his contract moving... and that Daniel Jones continues to fail for the Giants.

Deshaun might end up in NY... but wearing blue instead of green. NYG has two FRPs follow the Bears move to get Justin Fields, and has a glaring need at QB with Danny Dimes as an abject failure. With the offensive weapons in NYG and a really bad NFCE, Watson could really pick up the Giants and make them a contender.

We'll have to wait and see... 

[lumberjackchris]

Supposedly word about the draft last weekend was a settlement is imminent.

 

So here’s my scenario I want to play out. Deshaun get suspended like 6 games ish and then sits the rest of the year or something. In Philly Hurts proves to not be the answer. Philly also gets Indy’s 1st based on Wentz staying healthy. This gives Philly 3 1st round picks in 2022. Their own, Indy’s and Miami’s. 
 

Would you take those 3 1st rounders for Deshaun?

[LORK88]

5 minutes ago, lumberjackchris said:

Supposedly word about the draft last weekend was a settlement is imminent.

 

So here’s my scenario I want to play out. Deshaun get suspended like 6 games ish and then sits the rest of the year or something. In Philly Hurts proves to not be the answer. Philly also gets Indy’s 1st based on Wentz staying healthy. This gives Philly 3 1st round picks in 2022. Their own, Indy’s and Miami’s. 
 

Would you take those 3 1st rounders for Deshaun?

At this point, yes. If Deshaun is serious about not wanting to play as a Texan ever again, time to move on and get what we can. 

[Broncofan]

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/31439427/nfl-role-worries-lawyer-women-suing-deshaun-watson
 

If Buzbee ends up only “allowing” 4 plaintiffs to interview with the NFL the chances Watson plays in 2021 is sky high (I doubt it would be without penalty given the climate - but if you end up with 4 plaintiffs who felt disrespected after meeting  - hard to see a career ending decision coming).    The fact it’s been complete radio silence until now does suggest there’s likely some settlement coming.    Otherwise the Buzbee full court PR press would be ongoing, no? 

Edited May 14, 2021 by Broncofan

[ET80]

8 minutes ago, Broncofan said:

The fact it’s been complete radio silence until now does suggest there’s likely some settlement coming.    Otherwise the Buzbee full court PR press would be ongoing, no? 

I was thinking this as well - but Buzbee said something along the lines of "no, we're not settling".

https://www.tmz.com/2021/05/13/deshaun-watson-accusers-no-settlement-tony-buzbee-nfl-houston-texans/

I'm one to believe this is posturing on Buzbee's end, but who knows at this point.

10 minutes ago, Broncofan said:

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/31439427/nfl-role-worries-lawyer-women-suing-deshaun-watson
 

If Buzbee ends up only “allowing” 4 plaintiffs to interview with the NFL the chances Watson plays in 2021 is sky high 

The bigger part of this - eight clients are talking to Houston Police Department. That's going to have a greater bearing on what the league does - as we've seen before, the league is slow on civil cases, but a criminal case? That's minimum two games if Watson is incredibly lucky.

[Broncofan]

15 hours ago, ET80 said:

I was thinking this as well - but Buzbee said something along the lines of "no, we're not settling".

https://www.tmz.com/2021/05/13/deshaun-watson-accusers-no-settlement-tony-buzbee-nfl-houston-texans/

I'm one to believe this is posturing on Buzbee's end, but who knows at this point.

The bigger part of this - eight clients are talking to Houston Police Department. That's going to have a greater bearing on what the league does - as we've seen before, the league is slow on civil cases, but a criminal case? That's minimum two games if Watson is incredibly lucky.

I have zero illusions that Watson is walking away unscathed.   The league’s image would be tarnished given the publicity so far.   Casual fans form a huge part of the fanbase.   Even if Watson is “just” a creep - the PR damage is done.  
 

But there’s a huge difference between 4 games or less for Watson and career-threatening. Buzbee limiting his plaintiffs’ access to the NFL, if indeed true - makes the former far more likely.    As for the PD reports - it’s all about whether an actual criminal case is going forward.  If it doesn’t then settlement seems far more likely.  If a criminal case does move forward then that pushes resolution at the NFL level into a significant delay in ETA, and obviously career-threatening outcomes are back in play.  But if there isn’t a criminal case then a settlement and NFL decision soon afterwards would seem on the horizon. 

Edited May 14, 2021 by Broncofan

[ET80]

Watson back on social media for the first time since the allegations started - posting a few workout videos via Instagram.

Advertising he's staying in shape...?

[lumberjackchris]

19 hours ago, ET80 said:

Watson back on social media for the first time since the allegations started - posting a few workout videos via Instagram.

Advertising he's staying in shape...?

Maybe also a sign that negotiations and all this mess is close to wrapping up. 

[ET80]

1 hour ago, lumberjackchris said:

Maybe also a sign that negotiations and all this mess is close to wrapping up. 

I definitely agree on this. Watson isn't inviting people into his workouts like this unless things are getting to a stopping point.

Now, does Philly have the stones to go and get Watson? Or NYG? Perhaps Miami? 

Watson to NYG for both 2022 1sts, a 2023 1st, 2024 1/2 and Daniel Jones? I'd take that in a tank year.

[ET80]

https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/05/21/new-information-proper-context-for-deshaun-watson-sexual-misconduct-lawsuits-daily-cover

I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

[LORK88]

21 hours ago, ET80 said:

I definitely agree on this. Watson isn't inviting people into his workouts like this unless things are getting to a stopping point.

Now, does Philly have the stones to go and get Watson? Or NYG? Perhaps Miami? 

Watson to NYG for both 2022 1sts, a 2023 1st, 2024 1/2 and Daniel Jones? I'd take that in a tank year.

The question quickly becomes do we trade him as soon as we get a fair deal or do we wait until the offseason when we know what the draft pick will be? Part of the allure of trading him before the draft was getting the 2nd/3rd/8th pick overall and knowing what to expect to a degree. 

[lumberjackchris]

8 minutes ago, ET80 said:

https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/05/21/new-information-proper-context-for-deshaun-watson-sexual-misconduct-lawsuits-daily-cover

I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

Yikes.

[ET80]

https://www.audacy.com/sportsradio610/sports/houston-texans/cal-mcnair-attorney-tried-mediation-in-deshaun-watson-case?dfpvars[app]=true&app=true

So much for that...

Trying to mend bridges or renew trade value?

[ET80]

3 hours ago, ET80 said:

https://www.si.com/nfl/2021/05/21/new-information-proper-context-for-deshaun-watson-sexual-misconduct-lawsuits-daily-cover

I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

An interesting aspect of this article:

This time she forwarded Susan a screenshot of a message that asked whether Susan would talk to “Ashley’s lawyer (in reference to this summer and the Texans player).” The colleague identified Ashley Solis by name and said that her attorney was “Cornelia Harvey.” She then shared a phone number that matches Cornelia Brandfield-Harvey, an associate at The Buzbee Law Firm. This exchange was before Week 16 of the NFL season and weeks before Watson’s trade demand, defusing the conspiracy theory that has swirled, even in some NFL circles, that the suits are somehow related to Watson’s discord with the team.

Hopefully this puts that whole narrative to rest - this isn't some response to Watson requesting a trade, this has been marinading since December 2020 - back when Watson was ready for Eric Bieniemy.

[ET80]

On 5/21/2021 at 12:02 PM, LORK88 said:

The question quickly becomes do we trade him as soon as we get a fair deal or do we wait until the offseason when we know what the draft pick will be? Part of the allure of trading him before the draft was getting the 2nd/3rd/8th pick overall and knowing what to expect to a degree. 

I think any sort of trade right now - before the league hands down a suspension - is moving him for pennies on the dollar. That's really the main waiting game, see what sort of suspension is handed down by the league.

At that point, the Texans can save a lot of money by rescinding a lot of Watson's signing bonuses and such - so it becomes a move that suddenly becomes much more affordable for the team (and make no mistake, the Texans absolutely have to claw back that money - no need to act altruistically, that bridge was burned before all of this happened).

Back to the original question - don't trade him until you fully understand who is offering what in terms of what specific picks are on the table.