The Texans have a home game of interest in ’22 following the Deshaun Watson trade.
The opponents for the Houston Texans are set for the 2022 season, but the dates of those games have not been released. The game that just became “must watch” TV and circled on the calendar — if he’s not suspended — is when Deshaun Watson and the Browns visit the Texans at NRG Stadium.
This game will be off the charts if Deshaun Watson is able to play in the battle of the AFC North and AFC South in ’22, and it will be Watson’s grand return to face the franchise that drafted him into the NFL.
Again, this is THE game to see if the new starting quarterback of the Browns isn’t suspended by the NFL for all of the off-the-field legal issues he’s had over the past year or so.
Watson was traded on Friday by the Texans to the Browns — only after Deshaun Watson waived his no-trade clause — where the Texans received three first round picks, a third round pick and a fourth round pick. The Browns got their franchise quarterback and a fifth round pick from the Texans.
This means the Texans will have their own first round pick (No. 3 overall) and the first round pick of the Browns for ’22 which is the 13th overall pick, making up for past drafts that had no first round picks to speak of after they were traded away by a past general manager.
Houston Texans: Who will the Texans draft to face the Browns in 2022?
Those drafted players will hopefully be on the field when the Texans face the Browns, but what we don’t know is if Watson will be playing because the NFL has yet to make a ruling on if they will suspend Watson for any amount of time due to the various lawsuits from his off-the-field issues.
The Browns also gave Deshaun Watson a new contract of five years for $230 million all guaranteed, but due to the uncertainty of a possible suspension, his base salary for the ’22 season is said to be $1 million.
Here is a statement from the NFL about the Deshaun Watson trade and if a suspension could happen:
Statement from NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy in light of the Deshaun Watson trade. The league’s investigation is ongoing. pic.twitter.com/p5mCg2fHiS
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 18, 2022
At this point of the ’22 offseason it is unknown if the Texans will get to host Watson and his new team, but if he does play in Houston at NRG Stadium against his former team in front of the fans that used to cheer him … imagine the response that will happen.
Give us your thoughts on the Deshaun Watson trade and how you feel knowing there is a chance that Watson will face the Texans in Houston this upcoming season.