Jets Need to Trade for Deshaun Watson

Author: Patrick Sullivan

Editor: Aaron Mesco

For the past 4 seasons, Deshaun Watson has had his ups and downs with the Texans organization. However, there have been reports for the last month stating that he wants to be traded. This has led to a lot of speculation about where Watson will land in with a potential trade. As of now, the Texans are refusing to listen to any calls for a trade involving Watson, but that could change if Watson is a no-show to camp. There have been many players in the past that have refused to play for their team in hopes of a new deal or a trade. Usually franchise quarterbacks are not ever in these situations. However, the Texans have irritated Watson so much to the point where, for the first time in recent memory, a QB of this skill level is potentially on the market. Deshaun Watson, at his best, is a top five QB in the league, which is why this story is so intriguing.

The teams most in the running for Watson according to reports are the Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers, San Francisco 49ers, Miami Dolphins, and the New York Jets. All of these teams could use a QB and have the ammo to make a large enough offer to get Watson. However, the New York Jets are the team with the most available assets to acquire Watson, which makes them the best suitor for a blockbuster trade. The Jets have the number 2 and 23 picks this year, along with the 34, and not to mention another two first rounders in 2022. The only concern for the Jets would be if Watson would use his trade clause to avoid going to New York, but it has been reported he is willing to play for the Jets.

With all this being said, the New York Jets would be missing out on a franchise-altering opportunity if they were to not pursue a trade for Deshaun Watson. There are three main reasons as to why the Jets should pursue this trade. Firstly, the Jets have been very bad for the past ten years, the main reason being they haven’t had a franchise QB. Some may argue the Jets have had good quarterbacks in the past, but the only true franchise QB the Jets have ever had was Joe Namath back in the 1960s. Trading for Watson would give the Jets their first franchise QB in almost 52 years. Secondly, the Jets of course can draft a QB with the second overall pick. However, the Jets have not had the best track record with drafting quarterbacks which makes drafting a QB much riskier than trading for a proven talent in Watson. Lastly, the Jets current QB, Sam Darnold, is only 23 and still has a lot of room to grow. But, keeping him instead of trading for Watson would not give the Jets the best chance at success. Essentially, Watson is completely worth the draft capital the Jets would have to give up given their awful QB track record and because their next best options (drafting a QB or Sam Darnold) are much less talented than Watson as of right now.

A New York Jets team with Deshaun Watson at QB and Robert Saleh at head coach would give Jets fans hope that they so desperately need. This kind of opportunity almost never happens in the NFL, and this is the exact reason it is smart to stockpile draft capital. A Jets team with Watson at QB would be a monumental moment for the New York Jets franchise and would give them the best opportunity to become a powerhouse team in the NFL.

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