ESPN's Adam Schefter reported late Tuesday morning that the Atlanta Falcons could be a "sleeper team" to acquire Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. Now, it appears that the embattled signal-caller could have a mutual interest in joining the NFC South squad.
I’m told QB Deshaun Watson has interest in the Atlanta Falcons and has even reached out to the franchise personally, per source. https://t.co/wdQfgaXGjR
— Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) March 15, 2022
As Schefter and others pointed out, while Watson has spent his entire NFL playing career with the Texans, he has a history with the Falcons as a former ball boy during his high school days.
Deshaun Watson was once a ball boy for the #Falcons pic.twitter.com/DPESqkLuIw
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) March 15, 2022
The three-time Pro Bowler reportedly already met with the Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints, was slated to meet with the Cleveland Browns on Tuesday, and is now scheduled to meet with the Falcons on Wednesday. News came out on Monday that two teams possibly seeking a new starting quarterback — the Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks — were out of the running for Watson for different reasons.
It's also been reported that Houston is seeking a trade package of three first-round draft picks and multiple other assets for Watson, who has a no-trade clause in his contract.
Atlanta already has former MVP Matt Ryan as its expected "QB1" for 2022, but the career-long Falcons player is set to turn 37 in May, while Watson is still just 26 years old.
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