Three Panthers That Should Not be Involved in a Deal for Deshaun Watson

If the Panthers trade for Deshaun Watson, they must do so without giving up these three pieces.

Deshaun Watson will not be facing any charges after a grand jury did not find enough evidence to indict him on the nine accusations of sexual misconduct. 

Now that Watson's legal situation is cleared up, many teams such as the Carolina Panthers are going to be on the phones with Texans GM Nick Caserio to inquire about trading for the 26-year-old quarterback. 

Should the Panthers strike a deal for Watson, there are three players that Carolina needs to avoid including in the package being sent to Houston. 

DE Brian Burns

First and foremost, Brian Burns must be deemed untouchable. In my opinion, I would give up an extra draft pick if it meant holding on to Burns. Elite pass rushers are hard to come by, especially ones with the talent that he possesses. To be able to sustain the defensive success, you can't trade away arguably the most valuable piece to the puzzle. 

RT Taylor Moton

I'm sure the Texans would love to add one of the best right tackles in all of the NFL, but honestly, they may not even be interested in him due to the massive extension he received last offseason. It seems like the Texans want guys on rookie deals, so the Panthers may not have to even decline it. Then again, top-end tackles don't grow on trees. There's no way I'd include Moton in a deal to Houston for Watson. He was the only consistent member of the starting five up front a year ago and you have to have some alphas to get that unit cleaned up. That's exactly what Moton is. 

WR DJ Moore

Moore is one of the most underrated wide receivers in the league. It's hard to fathom that he has been able to go over 1,000-yards receiving in three consecutive seasons with the quarterbacks he's had to play with. The Panthers have an extremely thin wide receiving corps at the moment, especially when you take into account how much of a down year Robby Anderson had in 2021. Would Watson really waive his no-trade clause to come to Carolina if he has Robby Anderson and a bunch of unknowns to throw the ball to? Highly unlikely.

Players like RB Christian McCaffrey, S Jeremy Chinn, DT Derrick Brown, and CB Jaycee Horn are all very important pieces to Carolina's rebuild as well. However, a deal won't be done without one of them being dealt or one of the three aforementioned names that should be off the table. The Texans are going to want a massive haul in return, so prepare yourselves for some of the key young players to be on the move if Watson does indeed land in Carolina. 

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