Report: Dolphins’ owner Stephen Ross not pushing for Deshaun Watson trade

Rumors of a trade for Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson have been stirring since the offseason but have picked up steam as we near the trade deadline.

Last week, the Houston Chronicle’s John McClain reported that the Dolphins were in serious negotiations with the Texans to acquire their starting quarterback.

Since then, many reporters and analysts have speculated that Miami and Carolina are the two teams bidding for Watson’s services, but there hasn’t been much coming out from either of the camps.

On Monday, NBC Sports’ Peter King dropped a nugget about the trade negotiations that may be important for the likelihood that it gets done.

“I do hear that Miami owner Stephen Ross is not pushing his football people to deal for Watson right now,” King wrote in his weekly column.

Many believed it had been Ross who was in favor of this trade because of his expectation for his team to contend and win now. However, this doesn’t appear to be the case, and it’s smart.

While Watson would be a huge help on the field, there’s no guarantee that he will play. The NFL hasn’t given any public information on what they would do with the quarterback who is facing numerous legal issues if he was put in a situation where he would be starting on Sundays.

Without that information, it would be tough to make a trade unless the pieces going to the Texans were conditional to the point that they wouldn’t be sent if Watson isn’t allowed to play.