Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports raised eyebrows last week when he suggested Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson could avoid the commissioner's exempt list all season despite 22 accusers coming forward with allegations of sexual assault. Already the subject of civil litigation, Watson is also being investigated by Houston and Harris County Police, though, to this point, no charges have been filed. Watson, who expressed his desire to be traded before his misconduct allegations went public, has been present throughout training camp, but has practiced sparingly, leading team reporter Aaron Reiss of The Athletic to believe he'll be a healthy scratch when the Texans open their season September 12th against Jacksonville.
"The guy's not going to participate for the team this year. They talk about him like he's not going to be the quarterback. They talk about Tyrod Taylor as the quarterback," revealed Reiss while appearing as a guest on The Fantasy Authority Fantasy Football Podcast. "He's not injured. He's not going on I.R. So at least as of this moment, I would have to say he's just going to sit on the roster as a healthy scratch."
With no trade imminent (even in the NFL, where the disgraced likes of Michael Vick and Greg Hardy were both granted second chances, acquiring the services of an alleged sexual predator would invite too much controversy), the 25-year-old finds himself in a state of football purgatory, trapped on a team he wants nothing to do with. That feeling appears to be mutual as Watson has spent the summer relegated to working on a side field with third and fourth-stringers.
"I mean this guy didn't want to play for the team anyway, right? It kind of cuts both ways," said Reiss. "He's not practicing with the team. He's only participated in individual drills. In the past week or so, he's just been on the side field with a trainer. There's no indication that he's in the plan."
The idea of Watson, Houston's highest-paid player by far ($39-million annual salary) spending the season in street clothes is almost farcical in its absurdity, but with the league's investigation moving at a snail's pace, the NFL has left the Texans with almost no other choice.
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