What a Panthers-Texans Deshaun Watson Trade Might Look Like
With the November 2nd NFL trade deadline just around the corner, the Carolina Panthers have been linked to Houston Texans QB Deshaun Watson after the recent struggles of Sam Darnold.
For the Panthers to pull this trade off, they are going to have to overwhelm the Texans. The Miami Dolphins are the main team in the picture and Carolina will have to outbid them to acquire Watson. According to John McClain of the Houston Chronicle, Texans' GM Nick Caserio wants three ones and two twos. Will it take more than that for the Panthers to get a deal done? Here's three trade proposals that I came up with that might interest Houston.
Proposal No. 1 - Picks + Darnold
Panthers receive: QB Deshaun Watson
Texans receive: QB Sam Darnold, 2022 1st round pick, 2023 1st round pick, 2024 1st round pick
Analysis: Sam Darnold hasn't played well at all over the last four weeks but if I'm Scott Fitterer, he's going to have to be involved in this trade. I'm not paying Darnold that money to sit on the bench. He's only 24 and still has a lot of football ahead of him. Houston could rebuild around Darnold and take another quarterback in the draft next spring and let the two battle it out in 2022. This may not be a proposal that Houston is blown away with but if Miami doesn't offer up three firsts, it could be enough.
Proposal No. 2 - Picks + two players
Panthers receive: QB Deshaun Watson
Texans receive: QB Sam Darnold, DE Yetur Gross-Matos, 2022 1st round pick, 2023 1st round pick, 2023 2nd round pick
Analysis: This is a proposal that would probably get the Texans' interest. Gross-Matos is an interesting young player that could develop into a quality starter. Right now, he's splitting time with Morgan Fox who has played fairly well and on the opposite side, Brian Burns continues to do his thing. The Panthers don't necessarily need Gross-Matos. This gives Houston a young defensive player to build around that's not named Brian Burns, Donte Jackson, Derrick Brown, or Jeremy Chinn. Although this might get Houston interested, they still may want an additional draft pick.
Proposal No. 3 - Darnold + a slew of picks
Panthers receive: QB Deshaun Watson, RG Max Scharping
Texans receive: QB Sam Darnold, 2022 1st round pick, 2023 1st round pick, 2024 1st round pick, 2023 2nd round pick, 2024 2nd round pick
Analysis: This would be hard for Houston to pass up unless Miami somehow dishes them a more intriguing offer. Three firsts, two twos, a third, and Darnold gives Houston a lot to play with. From a Panthers perspective, it's a little more than you'd like to give up but it might get to this point to beat out Miami. A lot of it is going to be determined by how much the Dolphins are willing to give up. If it's just three firsts and maybe one additional pick, Carolina won't have to go crazy. That said, throwing that many picks to Houston should be enough to include right guard Max Scharping in the deal as well. The Panthers have struggled at all spots on the offensive line except at right tackle. Bringing in Scharping would give the Panthers more options up front. With John Miller being placed on injured reserve on Tuesday, Carolina needs to find some interior help.
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