If organizations are going to trade for Deshaun, they should be fully unified as a front office. There is a time and a place for it.
According to a league source, the Carolina and New Orleans Saints will meet with the Houston Texans quarterback over the next 48 hours.
Both teams would benefit from his presence. Even though they are locked into Sam Darnold for $18.9 million in his fifth year, the Carolinas aren't going to commit to him as their starter in 2022.
Drew Brees retired after the 2020 season and the Saints are still trying to find a long-term replacement. They used four quarterbacks last season, including Jameis Winston, who tore an anterior cruciate ligament.
Hill and Book are under contract.
Several other teams are interested in the former Pro Bowl selection, who has been accused of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct in 22 civil suits and 10 criminal complaints.
A grand jury in Houston declined to indict the former Clemson star on criminal charges, leaving the civil suits with accusations of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct during massage sessions.
Cleveland, Seattle, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Indianapolis are said to have expressed interest.
Houston can agree to a trade at any time, but it can't be made official until the new league year starts on Wednesday.
According to a league source, the Carolinas were ready to make an aggressive offer after Friday's grand jury proceedings.
They tried to trade for him early last year before the allegations against him came to light. After that, the panthers backed off.
The teams know that the league could still suspend him for violating the personal code of conduct.
Matthew Stafford went to the Los Angeles Rams after the Carolinas made an offer to Detroit. The New York Jets traded for Sam Darnold.
Scott Fitterer, the general manager, said at the NFL combine in Indianapolis last month that the position is open and that upgrading the quarterback is a priority.
The Saints have made it clear that quarterback is their top priority this year, whether that is re-signing Jameis or finding another veteran. They are not planning to rebuild their roster under new coach Dennis Allen, and are hoping to contend in the wide open NFC South.
The Saints are approaching the quarterback position with a sense of desperation, and it would be difficult to count on landing the quarterback they want, according to the general manager.
"Hopefully we can get something done with one of the guys that is available, and hopefully we can also get something done with Jameis as well," he said.
The Saints finished last in the league in passing yards in their first season after Brees retirement. However, that was due to injuries to Michael Thomas. Thomas missed the entire season with an ankle injury after he tore theACL in his left knee in Week 8.
The Carolinas ranked 30th in total offense last season with both of their starting quarterbacks.
The Texans have asked for at least one player and three first-round picks. The source said that the panthers are prepared to make a pitch that they don't believe will mortgage the future.
Jaycee Horn is the only untradeable player for Carolina because of dead money and his contract.
Carolina has the highest first-round pick in the draft. The ninth pick was acquired in the Wilson trade. Philadelphia has the 15th, 16th and 19th picks, New Orleans has the 18th and Pittsburgh has the 20th.
The Colts don't have a first-round pick.
The third pick is owned by Houston.
A $35 million salary cap number would be picked up by whoever acquires Watson. With only a little over $32 million in cap space and $13 million to use toward free agency, the panthers can create enough space to make that work.
Although the Saints began the season over the salary cap, they can still make room by restructuring deals and pushing cap costs into the future.
In theory, the Saints could restructure his deal to make his cap figure as low as $7 million by converting most of his $35 million salary into a signing bonus and voiding years to the end of his current deal.
It would be more difficult for New Orleans to re-sign Terron Armstead and Marcus Williams if they were to pay Watson.
Carolina would look at restructuring the four-year, $156 million deal signed with Houston in 2020.
The no-trade clause in his contract gives him a lot of say in where he goes.
The past year has been emotional for him, he said at a news conference outside of his attorney's office on Friday.
He didn't give a timetable for what's next.
Today is a big day, but I know we are far from being done of handling what we need to handle on the legal side. I would like to thank everyone that was a part of this. My team and I wanted to have a fair slate of us telling our side of the story, and the grand jury decided on that.
I will continue to fight to rebuild my name and appearance in the community. On the legal side, handle what we need to handle. Also ready to get on the field.
Mike Triplett contributed to the report.
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