Now that we know Tom Brady is going to be wearing a road jersey when he comes to Levi’s Stadium this year, where does that leave a possible Jimmy Garoppolo trade? There will still be enough suitors to make things interesting, but that deal is stuck behind the lumbering school bus that is the Deshaun Watson situation.
Watson was not indicted for sexual assault by a grand jury last Friday, which was the first major hurdle he had to clear to get out of Houston. Now that there will be no criminal charges against him, things can start to move forward.
There is no shortage of teams lining up to acquire the former 12th overall pick. Basically everyone that needs a quarterback, plus a few teams that have a guy they aren’t really in love with, has been connected to him at some point. The Saints, Panthers, Eagles, Browns, and Seahawks have all specifically been mentioned in the past week.
According to NFL Media, Watson reportedly wants to meet with the teams serious about trading for him before he makes any decision. Remember, Watson has a no-trade clause, so he’ll be able to choose his destination. Those meetings would obviously slow down the process.
One other issue: He still has those 22 civil suits against him, and he testifies under oath about those allegations tomorrow. Some of that deposition will likely leak to the media, which could make teams back off depending on what gets said. Plus, the NFL still hasn’t had its say. The league could still choose to punish Watson, even if all the civil cases are settled.
While it’s possible the 49ers could strike a deal any day, it’s unlikely. Most teams will want to wait to do business until the Deshaun Watson picture fully develops. With legal tampering beginning today and the new league year beginning on Wednesday, time is quickly becoming a factor for the 49ers if they want to be involved with the biggest names in free agency. Teams aren’t just going to wait around for them to clear cap space. The team could also extend or restructure existing contacts to free up space, but those deals would have to be done soon as well.
Whatever happens, the next few days are going to be very, very interesting.
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