HOUSTON — In August 2019, the Houston Texans had four superstar players on their roster: Deshaun Watson, J.J. Watt, DeAndre Hopkins and Jadeveon Clowney.
Now, it’s been more than two years since Clowney was traded, and all four are gone. Clowney was the first to be traded, prior to the start of the 2019 season, and Watson was the last, going to the Cleveland Browns on Friday. Watson requested a trade this offseason before he was accused of sexual assault and inappropriate behavior in 23 civil lawsuits. One lawsuit was dropped and 22 are active.
Ten women filed criminal charges against Watson, including eight of the litigants in the civil cases. A grand jury in Texas on March 11 declined to indict Watson on criminal charges, signaling the end of criminal proceedings related to him in Harris County, where Houston is located.
The Texans, who won the AFC South four times in five seasons from 2015 to ’19, have won a total of eight games over the past two seasons. Watson was on the roster but inactive in 2021, with Tyrod Taylor and then Davis Mills starting at quarterback.
Houston traded up to No. 12 to draft Watson in 2017, and he was expected to be the face of the franchise for the foreseeable future. Watson has played four seasons (54 games), and his 104 passing touchdowns and 14,539 passing yards rank second in Texans franchise history behind Matt Schaub (124 touchdowns and 23,221 passing yards in 90 games).
How did we get here after the 10-6 Texans won the AFC South in 2019, and where did it all go wrong?
Jan. 28, 2020: Texans name coach Bill O’Brien as GM
After going through the 2020 season without a general manager, Texans CEO and chairman Cal McNair gave his coach, Bill O’Brien, the additional title. The year before, the Texans had fired GM Brian Gaine after 18 months. They failed in their attempt to hire New England Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio in 2019…
Source : espn
