NFL Trade Rumors: the real reason why the Dolphins are still interested in Deshaun Watson
While Aaron Rodgers is unraveling the Green Bay Packers, Deshaun Watson is unraveling the Houston Texans. Between publicly wanting out of Houston and his current legal battles numbering over 20 according to the New York Times, Deshaun Watson's life is in turmoil.
Nevertheless, in a win-now league, several teams are still keeping an eye on Watson. The Miami Dolphins could be one of those teams. Here is why.
# 1 Tua Tagovailoa hasn't performed up to expectations
Of course, Tagovailoa's excuse was that it was his rookie year. However, it must have been more than a little disheartening for the Dolphins to see the offense struggle with Tagovailoa and take off with Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 2091 yards, 13 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in seven starts. Meanwhile, in nine starts, Tagovailoa threw for 1814 yards, 11 touchdowns, and five interceptions.
Needless to say, fewer yards with more starts is a problem for Tagovailoa.
# 2 Deshaun Watson versus Tua Tagovailoa: Playoffs
The clutch factor isn't as proven with Tagovailoa as it has been with Watson. Deshaun Watson has shown the ability to win games on his own and make killer throws at the right time. Meanwhile, Tagovailoa has not demonstrated this.
That means Tua Tagovailoa is still a year away from getting his first playoff experience, which almost always means getting eliminated in the first two games of the playoffs.
This means that Tua Tagovailoa could be another couple of years away from having a chance to go the distance. The Dolphins do not have that kind of time when Bill Belichick is rebuilding.
When it comes to playoff potential, Deshaun Watson is a safer bet as he has already won a playoff game. Watson is a Super Bowl-ready quarterback in terms of where he is in his development.
# 3 Watson's price
Deshaun Watson may be hitting rock-bottom in terms of value when it comes to franchise quarterbacks. He is coming off a down season, he has publicly said he wants out, and his troubled past is driving down his value even more.
That said, as a football player, his abilities have not taken a hit and he's still a young player of franchise-quarterback quality.
The Dolphins are also hoping they can convince him to compete for the starting job or to sit behind Tagovailoa first and ride the hot hand, as they did with Ryan Fitzpatrick last season.
Basically, the Dolphins could feel that the time is ticking on their best opportunity to get in front of a division that has been ruled by Tom Brady and Bill Belichick for twenty years.
The Dolphins could only see it as a matter of time until Belichick's Patriots are back at full strength and they want to capitalize on the time they have before it happens.