Deshaun Watson, accused of sexual harassment, is said to have fought with his lawyer until the very end to reach an agreement with the plaintiffs and to make a trade to the Miami Dolphins possible. But apparently too late.

Houston/Munich – There was speculation for a long time, but now it is clear: Deshaun Watson will not leave the Houston Texans this year.

A trade to the Miami Dolphins seemed to be imminent. According to the Houston Chronicle, the Dolphins and Texans agreed on the terms of the trade a fortnight ago.

However, the legal situation surrounding the quarterback derailed the deal.

The 26-year-old is being sued civilly by 22 women for sexual harassment. Ten of these women are also said to have filed criminal complaints with the police.

Stephen Ross, the owner of the Dolphins, would only agree to the trade if Watson reached a settlement with the plaintiffs, thus ending the proceedings.

The effort to reach a financial settlement began too late

Efforts to that effect apparently took place. Tony Buzbee, the plaintiffs’ attorney, told “Fox 26 Houston”, “There was obviously a lot of effort on their part to settle the case so there could apparently be a trade.”

He added: “I don’t know if the efforts came from Watson or from the Dolphins. But there was an insistence on a very, very robust non-disclosure agreement. We very firmly rejected that.”

According to the newspaper report, Watson had previously always ruled out a financial settlement because he would have seen it as an admission of guilt. However, as the trade deadline approached and the Dolphins’ interest intensified, he is said to have changed his mind.

However, this did not happen until the end of last week. Thus, there was too little time for his lawyer Rusty Hardin and the other side’s lawyer to come to an agreement.

Eight teams were interested in Watson

One thing seems clear: Watson, who signed a four-year, $156 million contract in September 2020, was desperate to get to Miami.

When the pass rusher told the Texans in January that he no longer wanted to play for the team, at least eight franchises were reportedly interested in him: the Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers, New England Patriots, Washington Football Team and New York Jets.

Watson has had a no-trade clause written into his contract and has reportedly made it clear to the Texans that he does not want to move to any team other than the Dolphins.

However, it is by no means certain that the ‘Fins will seek a trade of Watson next year.

Tua Tagovailoa can use the rest of the season to prove himself. Even though Miami has lost its past seven games, the No. 5 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft at least showed good touches in close losses to the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Making matters worse, the process for Watson is expected to drag on. According to Buzbee, the Texans star is scheduled to testify in February. The free agency period begins as early as March 16, 2022.

If the case is not dismissed or concluded by then, the Dolphins, as well as other interested teams, are likely to look elsewhere.

$10.54 million for a daily workout

And what will Watson do until then?

He’ll continue to show up at NRG Stadium day after day, go through his workout, be inactive on game days and draw his base salary of $10.54 million.

Next season, when his new contract takes effect, that will rise to $35 million. But no one knows what the situation will be then.

The only thing that is certain is that there are only losers in this matter so far.

Watson didn’t get the trade he was hoping for and may be facing the ruins of a promising career if the trial drags on or – worse – he is found guilty.

The Texans have an expensive quarterback who loses value in terms of a potential trade. And the Dolphins didn’t get the player who could have turned things around athletically.