Quarterback Deshaun Watson’s future in Houston is up in the air, but he will reportedly report to camp on time. Sam Craft/Associated Press
HOUSTON — Deshaun Watson plans to report to Houston Texans training camp Sunday, a person familiar with his decision told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The person added that the quarterback still wants to be traded and is reporting solely to avoid being fined.
Watson would have faced fines of $50,000 a day if he didn’t report. Players were reporting for COVID-19 testing and meetings on Sunday with practice scheduled to begin on Wednesday.
Watson led the NFL in yards passing last season and signed a four-year, $156 million contract extension with the Texans last offseason. But he became unhappy with the direction of the team and requested a trade in January after the Texans, who won the AFC South in 2018 and ’19, sunk to 4-12 last season.
His future was further clouded in March after 22 women filed lawsuits alleging that he sexually assaulted or harassed them. Houston police and the NFL are investigating the allegations, but no charges have been filed.
General Manager Nick Caserio has mostly avoided questions about Watson’s future, but has said that the team is “respectful of the legal process.” New coach David Culley has outright refused to answer questions regarding about the quarterback this offseason.
Caserio signed veteran Tyrod Taylor to a one-year deal in March to give the team an insurance policy at quarterback if Watson can’t or won’t play this season. The Texans drafted Stanford’s Davis Mills in the third round of this year’s draft, and he and Jeff Driskel, a recent free agent signee, will likely compete to back up Taylor if Watson isn’t an option.
BROWNS: Rookie linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah has been placed on the COVID-19 list just days before the opening of training camp.
The second-round pick from Notre Dame reported to training camp Saturday with the team’s other first-year players and quarterbacks. Cleveland’s first practice is Wednesday.
Owusu-Koramoah will have to be quarantined for at least 10 days if he tested positive and is symptomatic. NFL teams are not permitted to disclose if a player has either tested positive or is vaccinated.
Owusu-Koramoah is expected to compete for a starting job. He was projected to be a first-round pick, but slid back because he’s viewed as undersized and some teams were scared off by a reported heart condition.
The Browns liked his versatility and moved up in the second round to select him with the No. 52 overall pick.
The Browns were hit hard by the coronavirus last season.
All-Pro defensive end Myles Garrett missed two games after falling ill and he struggled with his conditioning after he returned. First-year coach Kevin Stefanski missed Cleveland’s first playoff win since 1994 after testing positive.
• Odell Beckham Jr. doesn’t want to miss a single moment this season.
The star wide receiver believes he and his Cleveland Browns teammates are poised to do something big.
Appearing at his youth football camp, Beckham, who has made a speedy recovery from a season-ending knee injury in 2020, said he has high hopes for this year’s Browns.
“It’s just something that feels special about this team,” he said Sunday at Gilmour Academy. “I think there’s something special going on and something special with this city. Cleveland needs a championship. And I think that’s the goal and mentality in that building.
“And that’s what I want to be a part of.”
Beckham’s comments were his first to media members since he got hurt early in a game at Cincinnati on Oct. 25.
While he was out, quarterback Baker Mayfield thrived and the Browns ended a long playoff drought and won their first playoff game – against rival Pittsburgh – since 1994. Cleveland lost to Kansas City in the division round.
VIKINGS: Minnesota signed former Jacksonville wide receiver Dede Westbrook, adding some needed depth at the position and another option for a punt returner.
Westbrook’s agency announced the news on Twitter. The product of Oklahoma, who was a fourth-round draft pick by the Jaguars in 2017, caught only one pass and played in just two games last year. He was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career, before a knee injury knocked him out of action for the second half of the schedule.
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