The situation around Deshaun Watson remains unclear.
With the allegations surrounding his personal life, nobody knows if Deshaun Watson will play in 2021 or 2022. One rumor that doesn’t seem to go away is Watson being traded. The Miami Dolphins continue to be highly linked with the former Clemson star.
With the offseason signing of Tyrod Taylor and the draft selection of Davis Mills, it seems the Texans are ready for life after Deshaun Watson.
A Crucial Year For Tua
It has been well documented how current Dolphins starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa had a mixed rookie year during the 2020 season.
Whilst he has had to come back from a career-threatening hip injury and a lack of a proper offseason, the NFL is a cutthroat league. No head coach has been epitomized this more in recent years than Miami’s Brian Flores.
The Arizona Cardinals drafted UCLA’s Josh Rosen in 2018 tenth overall. After just a year, they traded him to the Dolphins and took Kyler Murray first overall.
Back when Murray was selected, plenty of media personalities defended Rosen. They spoke of how he’d not been given a chance. There is no way that the Cardinals regret that decision to trade Rosen after how Murray’s first two seasons have gone.
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New Toys For Tagovailoa
Rosen may not have been given a chance at the Cardinals, but Miami is doing all they can to give Tua the best opportunity.
Those who defend Tua often refer to the fact that he had no one to throw to besides tight end Mike Gesicki and wide receiver DeVante Parker. Flores and General Manager Chris Grier have gone out this offseason and supplied their QB1 with new toys.
Parker and Gesicki will be joined by Free Agency signing Will Fuller and the sixth overall selection in the draft, Jaylen Waddle. Along with the running backs to hand the ball over to Myles Gaskin, Salvon Ahmed, and Malcolm Brown, the Dolphins also welcome back receiver Albert Wilson after he sat out 2020 due to COVID-19.
Flores has already shown his lack of faith in Tua by benching him twice during his rookie season. With the Dolphins roster impressive in most areas, it would not be a shock if Tua is benched again should he struggle during the 2021 season. We have seen Kyle Van Noy be released just one year into his four-year contract.
Owner Stephen Ross has spoken of Miami’s Super Bowl aspirations. The front office will not be afraid to move on from Tua if he struggles again in the upcoming season, especially with an elite QB such as Watson potentially available.
Teams That May Also Want Watson
Denver Broncos are seen as one of the front runners.
Aaron Rodgers is also looking at Denver as an option, but ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler has spoken of Watson’s “intrigue” in the Broncos. Former teammate Kareem Jackson has also stated how Watson wants to be in Denver.
The Philadelphia Eagles also are a team people are saying to watch out for. They possess the draft capital, and they have a situation similar to what the Cardinals had in 2019.
Like Arizona, the Eagles have a new head coach in Nick Sirianni, who didn’t draft their starting quarterback. Jalen Hurts had an okay first season, albeit with limited game time. The Cardinals couldn’t pass up Kyler, and the Eagles may feel they simply cannot miss the opportunity to get someone of Watson’s caliber.
Should Miami Trade For Deshaun?
To sum it up, absolutely.
Many Miami fans appear to have Tua’s back, but plenty also doubt his long-term ability. Three anonymous players spoke of their reservations about him being the guy. Tagovailoa has openly said he didn’t know the playbook “well enough.”
The 6-3 record as a starter is a fraudulent argument as it was only really the Cardinals win that Tua was responsible for.
Tua might be the guy, but he also may not be. Deshaun Watson is a top 5 quarterback who has no question marks on the field, at least. Miami has already passed on a future Hall of Famer and Super Bowl winner in Drew Brees back in 2006. They cannot allow another opportunity to slip through the net.
If Houston takes just X Howard and Tua, go for it Phins. I believe in Tua, but Watson is Watson, and with these new offensive weapons, and his old pal Fuller, Phins could be a top 5 offense. Phins would not need Tua. If Houston wants (3) 1st round picks and Tua, Howard, etc, NO WAY. Of course, this would only stand to be if the man is acquitted on charges and is not a jailbird or bringing legal baggage still with him. All has to be clear along with Phins getting him a ‘special and exclusive’ team massage specialist…lol.
Flores has already shown his lack of faith in Tua by benching him twice during his rookie season.
You media folk are making WAAAAY too much of those two games where I would remind you that in one game (Raiders) you got some Fitzmagic but in the first one (Denver) you got Fitztragic as he threw a pick that sealed the game shut for Denver.
Fitz is a gunslinger in the same way Marino was…Only difference is he doesn’t have the arm Marino does!
And he will attempt tight throws that some elite franchise QBs would never even attempt. And this is why he has had the career he has. Sometimes you get Fitzmagic and other times Fitztragic.
Fitz is the kind of guy who can make a mediocre offense look better. Especially on a team where your WRs don’t get a whole lot of separation. He is mobile enough to make a mediocre OL manageable and he has a quick enough release to avoid too many sacks.
And this is why he was put in those two games where a playoff is on the line and you need someone to make a play to try and win that one game.
Rookies are not ever taught or expected to make those risky throws in their first year in fact if they do they wind up like Sam Darnold or any other of the 1st round drafted QBs who have been traded away because they had a less than 1.5:1 TD to INT ratio.
I personally don’t want anything to do with Watson, Rodgers would be one thing. But if Watson got into sexual conduct issues in Houston, image what kind of trouble he could get in at Party City Miami?
I can’t say Tua is it or not, He sure hasn’t proven anything in either direction. But I’m willing to give him a year to see how he develops before I go giving up on the only 1st round QB we have taken since Marino.