Texans To Trade J.J. Watt In Offseason?

Texans star defensive end J.J. Watt was mentioned in trade rumors in advance of the November 3 deadline. Though he ended up staying put, he may be playing his last games with the only team he has ever known. According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, Watt is a virtual lock to be dealt this offseason.

Watt, 31, recently indicated that he does not want to be part of a rebuild, and the 1-6 Texans, who will be looking for a new GM and new head coach at season’s end, appear to be heading in that direction. Plus, Houston is without a first- or second-round selection in 2021, and while Watt is unlikely to fetch a draft pick that high, the club is desperate for whatever draft capital it can get.

The Texans had a number of players that other teams were interested in trading for, but acting GM Jack Easterby was in an awkward position due to his interim title, and he did not want to make a deal unless he was overwhelmed by an offer.

“[Watt will] be traded by March, bank on it,” said one GM. “That’s a hard trade to make in the middle of the season and there are going to be questions about the medicals. [Easterby] can’t make that trade in November. And the owner probably wasn’t quite ready to make it, but it’s coming.”

Indeed, owner Cal McNair was reportedly reluctant to eat salary to facilitate a trade, but given Watt’s age and medical history, McNair will likely need to change his tune this offseason. Watt is due to make $17.5MM in 2021, the last year of his current contract.

Watt, the 11th-overall pick of the 2011 draft, is a Houston legend for his on-field dominance and his off-field charitable work. But he missed significant time due to injury in 2016, 2017, and 2019, and his best days are probably behind him. Still, even an aging Watt can be a force, and there will be a number of contenders interested in his services.

La Canfora names the Steelers and Packers as two potential landing spots.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/7/20

Here are Saturday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Jets Trade Avery Williamson To Steelers

With a couple of days left until the deadline, we’ve got news of another major trade to pass along. The Jets are going to trade linebacker Avery Williamson to the Steelers.

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News was the first to tweet that a deal was in the works, and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network quickly confirmed that the trade was in fact happening (Twitter link). Pittsburgh will send New York a 2022 fifth-rounder and get back a 2022 seventh-rounder, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Williamson will provide needed reinforcements at inside linebacker after the Steelers just lost stud Devin Bush for the rest of the season with a torn ACL.

Pittsburgh is the last undefeated team in the league and they’re looking like legit Super Bowl contenders, so it’s not surprising that they’re being aggressive. It makes plenty of sense for the 0-8 Jets as well, as New York is looking to sell off veteran assets in exchange for whatever draft capital they can get.

A fifth-round pick of the Titans back in 2014, Williamson signed a three-year, $22.5MM pact with the Jets in the 2018 offseason. He started all 16 games for New York that year, racking up a whopping 120 tackles, before missing all of last season with a torn ACL. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent this offseason and with Bush coming back in 2021, this will likely be a short-term rental.

The Jets have already shipped out Steve McLendon and Jordan Willis, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see things devolve into a full-blown fire sale in the next couple of days.

Trade Rumors: Thomas, Njoku, Watt, Jets

Saints head coach Sean Payton has said his team has no interest in trading star receiver Michael Thomas, though Thomas’ camp was recently said to be looking for potential deals. There has been no movement towards a Thomas trade, and whether that’s because New Orleans has no interest in dealing him or because the club has not received an offer it likes, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says Thomas will stay put.

With the trade deadline two days away, let’s round up a few more rumors on players who could be on the move:

  • The Browns don’t want to trade tight end David Njoku, but Njoku has renewed his request to be dealt, and Rapoport says Cleveland has been fielding calls on the former first-rounder. It may take at least a fourth-round pick to get a deal done, but with Austin Hooper set to return and with the emergence of rookie Harrison Bryant, the Browns may elect to move Njoku.
  • Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports writes that the Texans are at the center of the trade market, with one executive saying Houston could move as many as five players if it wants to. Rapoport expects the Packersinterest in Will Fuller — which dates back to the summer — to ramp up, but it will likely take a high pick to convince the Texans to move Fuller. Fellow WR Kenny Stills has also drawn some interest, though rival clubs see the contracts for Stills and Randall Cobb as prohibitive. DE J.J. Watt may be receptive to a trade, but considering his contract and age, other teams probably don’t value him like the Texans do.
  • The Jets have received calls on LB Avery Williamson, OTs George Fant and Chuma Edoga, and CB Quincy Wilson, per Albert Breer of SI.com. Rich Cimini of ESPN.com says the Steelers — who recently lost Devin Bush for the season — could be in the market for Williamson, and Edoga also seems like a good bet to be dealt since he does not look like a fit with the current regime.
  • La Canfora says teams have also called the Jets about WR Breshad Perriman and TE Chris Herndon, though Breer notes that safety Marcus Maye has not drawn much interest.
  • Rapoport names Dolphins RB Jordan Howard and Seahawks TE Jacob Hollister as two other players who could be moved. And though the Bengals are shopping disgruntled wideout John Ross, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com says there hasn’t been interest in Ross (Twitter link).

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/31/20

Here is the league’s avalanche of Halloween minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/27/20

We’ll keep track of the practice squad moves from the past day here:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Released: T Jared Hilbers

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

  • Signed: K Austin MacGinnis

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/24/20

Here is another spree of Saturday minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

  • Moved from IR to reserve/COVID-19 list: CB Michael Joseph

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

  • Promoted: CB Dylan Mabin

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

  • Activated from IR: OL Cameron Clark
  • Promoted: K/P Sergio Castillo, LB Bryce Hager

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/23/20

Here are Friday’s minor moves:

Carolina Panthers

New Orleans Saints

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Promoted: DE Henry Mondeaux

Steelers Cut Dustin Colquitt, Expected To Bring Back Jordan Berry

A punter transition will take place in Pittsburgh, one that will send out the Steelers’ replacement punter and reinstall the position’s previous occupant.

The Steelers released Dustin Colquitt on Friday and are expected to re-sign Jordan Berry, per Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Berry operated as the Steelers’ punter from 2015-19 before being released in September.

Mike Tomlin said Colquitt’s punting was “not up to snuff” through five games. A 15-year punter with the Chiefs, Colquitt is averaging 43.1 yards per punt. That would be his lowest figure since his rookie season. The Chiefs released Colquitt this offseason, going with rookie Johnny Townsend in his place.

Berry averaged 45.5 yards per boot last season but was under 44 in 2017 and ’18. The Steelers gave Berry a two-year extension in 2019 but initially cut bait during that deal’s duration. Berry worked out for the Steelers on Monday and, provided none of his COVID-19 tests come back negative, would be in line to kick against the Titans on Sunday. Should the Steelers not have Berry ready to go, they have a backup plan in rookie Corliss Waitman. The South Alabama product resides on Pittsburgh’s practice squad.

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