Watson’s future as Texans quarterback in limbo
With quarterback Deshaun Watson relegated to little more than a spectator so far in Houston Texans camp, Tyrod Taylor has been running the offense and asserting himself as the team’s leader.
“I definitely feel that guys look for me for leadership, and obviously that comes with the quarterback position, and I welcome that role,” Taylor said.
Though general manager Nick Caserio and new coach David Culley won’t say that they’re planning to start Taylor this season, everything that’s happened in practices this week has shown that they expect Taylor to replace Watson.
Watson led the NFL in yards passing last season and signed a four-year, $156 million contract extension with the Texans last offseason. But he became unhappy with the direction of the team and requested a trade in January after the Texans, who won the AFC South in 2018 and ’19, slipped to 4-12 last season.
His future was further clouded in March after 22 women filed lawsuits alleging that he sexually assaulted or harassed them. Houston police and the NFL are investigating the allegations, but no charges have been filed.
More football
More than half of the 67 NFL players who opted out of the 2020 season amid the COVID-19 pandemic are no longer with the same team. Almost two dozen aren’t on anyone’s roster. Thirty
-three of the players who opted out have returned to open 2021 training camp with their same team. Twenty-nine were waived or released before camps opened, four retired and one was traded. That represents a whopping 50.7% turnover rate for this subset of players, far exceeding the average annual rate of 36.2%.
• San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa, coming back from a torn ACL, said he is optimistic he’ll be ready for the start of the regular season.
Baseball
Hector Roa went 4 for 4 with two runs scored and an RBI, Bralin Jackson went 2 for 4 with three RBIs and Cam Phelts and Cody Young each added two RBIs as the Washington Wild Things (29-27) beat the visiting Tri -City ValleyCats (28-28), 9-2. Ryan Hennen (7-2) earned the win with 6⅓ solid innings.
Basketball
The Celtics, Hawks and Kings agreed to a three-team trade that saw Tristan Thompson go to Sacramento, Delon Wright go to Atlanta and Kris Dunn, Bruno Fernando and a 2023 secondround pick head to Boston.
• Milwaukee Bucks general manager Jon Horst said Giannis Antetokounmpo doesn’t need any type of offseason procedure for the left knee that the two-time MVP hyperextended during the team’s NBA title run.
• The Oklahoma City Thunder acquired forward
Derrick Favors and a future first-round draft pick from the Utah Jazz in exchange for a 2027 second-round pick and cash considerations.
Hockey
David Krejci is leaving the Boston Bruins after 14 NHL seasons to continue his hockey career in his native Czech Republic. “At this point in my career and life, I need to return to the Czech Republic and play in front of my family who sacrificed so much to help me achieve my NHL dreams,” Krecji said.
Colleges
The NCAA Board of Governors called for a constitutional convention in November, the first step toward launching dramatic reform in how the sprawling, multibillion-dollar enterprise of college sports is governed for years to come. In the wake of a stinging loss in the Supreme Court and radical changes to the way athletes can be compensated — and with College Football Playoff expansion and major conference realignment already in motion — the NCAA said it wants to “reimagine” how it manages the needs of its more than 450,000 athletes.