Do Texans prefer to trade Deshaun Watson after season?

The Houston Texans have been fielding calls from teams that have interest in Deshaun Watson, but the sexual assault allegations against the star quarterback have made the situation an incredibly complicated one. Given how things have progressed, it’s fair to wonder if the Texans would prefer to wait until next offseason to see where they’re at.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Media noted on Monday that the Texans will likely get at least three first-round picks for Watson if and when they trade him. Should they decide to wait after the 2021 season, they’ll then know exactly where each of those prospective picks would fall.

“Those (picks) would still be there after the season, except the Texans would know how much each first-rounder was worth,” Rapoport said. “They would know, let’s say, if they were trading for the No. 23 pick or the No. 5 pick. That is a huge, huge difference and one reason why it is actually conceivable for the Texans to say, ‘You know what, Deshaun Watson won’t play for us this year. That’s OK, we’ll just pay him $10 million and try to do this after the season.'”

Watson still wants out of Houston, but the Texans simply may not be able to get fair value for him at the moment. The Miami Dolphins are said to still be interested, but teams have reportedly asked Houston for pick protections to mitigate any potential suspension or criminal prosecution. If the Texans wait until next offseason, perhaps there will be more clarity with Watson’s legal situation.

Dolphins coach Brian Flores responded to the Watson rumors on Sunday, and he stopped well short of denying that his team is interested.