Speculation continues to link the Miami Dolphins to Deshaun Watson.
As the off-season continues to barrel towards the league new year, the Miami Dolphins and Deshaun Watson talk heats up as well.
Watson is a top 10 maybe even a bonafide top five quarterback in the NFL and rarely do QBs of this caliber become available in a trade or any other avenue. We can look back over the last 20 years and question every move that the Miami Dolphins made or didn’t make. Most of the time, that all goes back to two simple decisions that changed the franchise for a decade plus.
Of course, we are talking about the Dolphins decision to trade for Daunte Culpepper instead of signing then free agent, Drew Brees. Is Miami potentially in another corner having to make a similar decision? Maybe.
The compensation for Watson would not be a simple 2nd-round draft pick. It will be a lot more and while the Dolphins have plenty of capital, would they want to throw it all at one guy?
Watson signed a monster contract extension only a year or so ago and it is in the neighborhood of $156 million on paper. He has a no-trade clause in the deal that prohibits the Texans from trying to trade him. That does not mean he can’t request a trade and he may be close to asking for that very thing.
Watson wants to be involved in the hiring process of both the GM and the head coach but the ownership has already moved ahead with Nick Caserio to fill the GM job and that didn’t sit well with Watson.
All of that doesn’t really matter for the Miami Dolphins at this point. Let’s get to the “but” of the title.
Right now, all we can do is speculate on what the compensation for Watson would be. Without knowing what the Texans would expect or want in return we can assume that it would take at the very least, the 3rd overall pick, the 18th overall pick, Tua Tagovailoa, and probably more.
For me, that’s a little too rich for my blood. The Texans are in a bad situation with their cap and moving on from Watson would eventually help that situation. If Watson does demand a trade then that too should be taken into account in terms of the compensation. If the Texans have little choice, they may be forced to take far less. It’s a dangerous game and would make for an ugly precedence.
More fuel was added to this fire over the weekend when Chris Mortensen tweeted that Watson would accept a trade to the Dolphins, potentially.
Sources say Watson could play hardball with Texans about a trade. His new $156 million contract includes a no-trade clause but informed speculation from a source is that he would consider the @MiamiDolphins in which Tua Tagovailoa and additional compensation goes to Houston.
— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) January 10, 2021
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There is no question that Watson has talent but to give up what essentially would be a top QB prospect and at least two first-round projected starters, Miami would be swaying from their plan to rebuild the franchise.
This is a tough possibility because Watson immediately makes the Dolphins offense better and he has year’s ahead of him and is proven unlike Tua who has potential but is still trying to find his way.
All of this adds up to one thing. You either think the Dolphins should stay the course, keep their draft capital, and build the roster, or you see an opportunity to trade for a top QB which likely solves your QB problem for years but you give up a lot of potential hole filling players that will make your team better around him.
Luckily, this isn’t our choice to make. Chris Grier and Brian Flores have the task of determining what the compensation is they would be willing to pay, if anything.