Call it a pipe-dream, call it a longshot, and throw all of the Lloyd Christmas memes at it you want: There is enough smoke out there to know there’s an actual fire when it comes to Deshaun Watson wanting a trade out of Houston and the Denver Broncos being one of his preferred possible destinations.
Watson has become the talk of the 2021 offseason after asking for a trade out of the Houston Texans organization. New Texans general manager Nick Caserio and pretty much anyone in Texans management has come out and said that they do not intend to trade Watson.
With that being said, Watson’s desire to leave has not changed and reports have started to emerge of where he would want to play if his request is ultimately granted.
The Denver Broncos have come up a number of times from different sources.
The most direct report of Watson’s interest in Denver has come from Denver Broncos safety Kareem Jackson, a former teammate of Watson’s with the Houston Texans. Jackson has spoken to Watson directly and said that the disgruntled quarterback told him the Broncos are a team he’s interested in landing with.
There are, of course, other teams Watson would play for, but the fact that the Denver Broncos are on the list is a fun talking point in and of itself. If Watson is demanding a trade and the Denver Broncos are a team he would want to play for, how does new general manager George Paton approach that situation?
The fact that the Houston Texans are seemingly telling teams that Watson is not available (for the time being) makes it tough to know, but it basically means the Broncos have to have no fewer than two offseason master blueprints — one in a world where the Texans make Watson available for trade, and one where they don’t.
According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Broncos were mentioned yet again in behind-the-scenes talks about where Watson would want to end up if he’s traded.
.@JFowlerESPN from a source:
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) February 12, 2021
"Deshaun Watson has a list of teams he's 'intrigued by' ... I didn't get all the teams, but I was told that the Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers are two of them. ... I was told the Jets, 'eh probably not.'" pic.twitter.com/8YOmTbF3zw
As of this particular point in time, the clock is ticking on the possibility of Watson being on the move. The 2021 NFL Draft is really a drop-dead deadline for that to happen if the Texans want to bring in any capital they can use immediately.
A hypothetical trade return was thrown out there of two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and two defensive starters for Watson. The Broncos could easily offer that, even if the pain of losing some guys defensively would sting a little bit.
The draft picks are unknowns and you would easily trade that for a player like Watson, but there is no doubt that any hypothetical trade for Watson should be in the realm of “tough pill to swallow” because that is what it will take to get him if the Texans relent.
After releasing future Hall of Famer JJ Watt, you have to wonder how close they might be to doing just that.
Watt could have been traded for something and the draft pick-starved Texans decided to let him go for nothing. This is clearly a move to let Watt ultimately go where he chooses but the organization isn’t exactly saving face with that one.
For now, the possibility of a Watson trade for the Denver Broncos feels remote at best. The team will obviously try to upgrade at the quarterback position and if they get a chance to trade for Watson, they probably would. They did for Matthew Stafford.
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After the team looked into trading for Stafford, it’s being assumed (and fairly so) that new GM George Paton is going to be aggressive. He promised not to be reckless, but he might have to punch the gas at least a little bit if the Texans open this thing up.