The excitement over the idea of Deshaun Watson certainly has Chicago Bears fans all lathered up. Understandably so. The idea of landing the three-time Pro Bowler would be an instant change to their fortunes. However, the NFL has a long history of being a buzzkill for the Bears when it comes to the quarterback position. That figures to be the case again here.
A source reached out to me with an update. While the Bears brass views Watson as the top quarterback on their wishlist this offseason, plans have already begun shifting towards focusing on alternatives. Why? The belief that the Texans are preparing to drag their feet with the young quarterback. That is to say, they’ll deny any trade inquiries and hold Watson hostage, attempting to convince him to return to the fold as their quarterback.
Belief is growing this will stretch even into the regular season.
For Watson’s part? All signs point to him being fully prepared to sit out as long as it takes to get out of Houston. Thus the two sides are in a standoff with no sign of a resolution coming. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune corroborated this in his recent mailbag. Everything he’s heard to this point from league sources is the Texans are going to resist a trade for as long as possible.
“In talking to people with a couple of teams over the last couple of days, real doubt remains that this will actually happen. The Texans only stand to lose if they trade Watson. As delirious as some are with the idea of their team acquiring Watson, imagine the Texans front office on the opposite end of the spectrum.”
This puts the Bears in a difficult spot. They need an upgrade at quarterback now. Not later. GM Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy are battling for their jobs. They can’t afford to wait around hoping Watson will suddenly become available. It appears their information has told them that avenue won’t go anywhere. So the focus is shifting to alternatives.
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Bears can still keep the Deshaun Watson option open though
How? It depends on what they do at quarterback. If they end up making a big trade with another team, then any idea of Watson becomes unlikely. However, if the Bears were to sign a veteran on the cheap and focus their resources on building up the offense, this could keep their options open if Watson becomes available later down the line. Either at the trade deadline in October or next offseason.
For example, the Bears could sign somebody like Ryan Fitzpatrick to a cheap deal. They franchise tag Allen Robinson and then use their top two draft choices on the offensive line and wide receiver help. This preserves their future assets and keeps them in the picture if Deshaun Watson finally pops loose down the line. It’s not an ideal scenario, but it keeps that dream alive at least.
Smart money though says the Bears are going to be aggressive.
They already were rumored to go hard at Matthew Stafford before he was sent to L.A. One should expect the same elsewhere. Derek Carr? Dak Prescott? A possibility still exists both of those QBs could be in play somehow. There could also be a top draft prospect they covet too. All signs point to Chicago doing everything in their power to make a splash this offseason. If it’s not going to be Watson, they seem resolute to look elsewhere.
