Watson officially wants to be traded
This comes on heels of Texans hiring Black coach
A lot is going on in Houston right now. The Texans have a new head coach and the franchise’s star quarterback still wants out.
Deshaun Watson has officially requested a trade from the team that drafted him with the 12th overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Watson — who is signed through the 2025 season after inking a four-year, $156 million contract extension in September — apparently made his request “weeks ago,” per ESPN. The Texans’ hiring of Ravens assistant coach David Culley to be their new head coach isn’t going to change Watson’s mind, Schefter reported.
Culley, 65, spent the last two seasons on the Ravens’ staff as Baltimore’s assistant head coach and passing-game coordinator. He is a first-time head coach and the only Black coach hired this offseason when seven jobs were open. In addition to the Ravens, Culley has worked for the Bills, Chiefs, Eagles, Steelers and Bucs.
In hyping his former assistant, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh singled out Watson as a reason the Texans offered a “great job” for Culley.
“It’s a great opportunity there,” Harbaugh said. “They’ve got a heck of an organization. I do believe that David Culley would be a tremendous hire for any team, and maybe especially the Texans with Deshaun Watson.”
But if Watson gets his way, he’ll never play a game for Culley.
Watson, 25, a three-time Pro Bowler, is coming off statistically his best NFL season, yet his team only won four games. He had career bests in yards (4,823), completion percentage (70.2%), yards gained per attempt (8.9) and touchdowns (33).
Bill O’Brien, who held both the head coach and general manager titles in Houston, was fired after the Texans’ 0-4 start. In his role as GM, O’Brien infamously traded away star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins in March to the Cardinals in exchange for oft-injured running back David Johnson. Hopkins continued to do Hopkins-like things in Arizona and earned his fifth Pro Bowl selection in 2020. Johnson played in just 12 games and rushed for 691 yards.
STEELERS: Pittsburgh wants Ben Roethlisberger to return in 2021. It’s the money, however, that makes it tricky. Team president Art Rooney II admitted Thursday there is work to be done to lower Roethlisberger’s scheduled $41.2 million salary cap hit before Roethlisberger can begin work on his 18th season in Pittsburgh.
The club has already broached the subject with Roethlisberger but with specifics on the 2021 cap still scarce, Rooney said it’s too early to get into details.
“I think we’d like to see Ben back for another year if that can work, but as we said there’s a lot of work to be done if that can happen,” Rooney said.
The cap was $198.2 million in 2020 but could drop to $180 million or possibly even lower in 2021, a byproduct of the COVID-19 pandemic that kept most stadiums — including Heinz Field — empty for all or most of the season. The Steelers could conceivably save $19 million against the cap if they cut Roethlisberger, but Rooney dismissed that notion.
SHAQ BOWL: Fans looking for pregame entertainment before the Super Bowl will have another option this year.
Shaquille O’Neal will be holding the virtual SHAQ Bowl on Feb. 7. It’s one of the few events taking place in Tampa, Florida, since many parties that traditionally take place during Super Bowl week have been canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.