Why the 49ers Will Not Trade for Deshaun Watson

Deshaun Watson to the San Francisco 49ers?

Maybe.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk is reporting that there is a possibility that Watson could request a trade from the Houston Texans.

Unlike popular belief, Watson's contract right now is tradeable. His cap charge to the Texans would only be $21.6 million, so considering the massive haul of draft picks they could get for him would negate the loss. Plus, the team that acquires him would be in good standing with his contract in 2021 salary cap wise. And for a team like the 49ers, that is a significant benefit to have.

This could be an avenue worth exploring for the 49ers if they want to win it all in 2021. Watson is the necessary quarterback upgrade for the 49ers that I mentioned in a previous article. The loss of draft picks will certainly cripple the 49ers' future drafts, but you really can't put a price on an elite quarterback like Watson who can take them to new heights.

As tempting as it is to want to acquire Watson, do not expect the 49ers to pull the trigger.

In fact, I would even bet they do not even attempt a trade. At best, they will tap the Texans on the shoulder because that is what almost every team will be doing. But the reason the 49ers will keep themselves from attempting a trade is because of their ego.

Watson was right there to be swooped up by the 49ers in 2017 with the No. 3 overall pick. Instead, they opted to take Solomon Thomas. His selection will never not stop being a laughable one by the 49ers. The fact that Watson has become a star makes it so that mistake will never go away.

And that is why the 49ers will not trade all of that draft capital for him.

By trading for Watson, they are openly admitting that they fumbled the bag with drafting Thomas over Watson. That they were wrong for not prioritizing quarterback as the greatest need entering the 2017 draft.

Now I am not saying that the 49ers shouldn't trade for Watson. I am more hesitant to pull the trigger because of Watson's backloaded deal. However, I would like to believe that the 49ers could end up working around his contract in the future and that Watson is willing to do so because of how much he values winning. Trading for him, despite the cost, cannot be seen as wrong. Swinging for the fences to grab an elite quarterback is always commendable.

But why I do not envision the 49ers going after Watson is because of Kyle Shanahan.

He specifically is too prideful to execute the trade for Watson because he knows the backlash that will come with it. A massive ego envelops the vast majority of players and coaches in the NFL. So many of them would rather maintain their ego even at the expense of improving the team.

What matters to Shanahan a lot that goes over the heads of many is how invested in his image he is. He does not want to be put in a scenario where his credibility is shot. This happens with this personnel decisions and his play calling at times.

Trading for Watson would be great for the 49ers. And while I sincerely doubt the Texans send him packing, the 49ers still would not pull the trigger because of their ego.