Deshaun Watson reportedly was very interested in returning to his home state for the next chapter of his NFL career.
So much so that the three-time Pro Bowl quarterback apparently was already making calls around the league trying to get fellow stars to join him in Atlanta.
Prior to his stunning change of heart and choosing to join the Cleveland Browns, Watson reportedly was set on a trade to either the Falcons or the New Orleans Saints. Atlanta’s roster leaves much to be desired, but location and familiarity with his surroundings reportedly were very important to the Gainesville, Ga. native.
In a column published to ESPN.com on Wednesday, NFL insider Jeremy Fowler shed light on how strong Watson’s interest in the Falcons was.
“Here’s an illustration of how close the Falcons were to getting quarterback Deshaun Watson: Several sources say Watson actually FaceTimed with free agents Jarvis Landry and Leonard Fournette late last week about playing together in Atlanta,” Fowler wrote. “As of Thursday night, Watson most definitely expected to go to Atlanta. And Atlanta thought it had Watson, who was considering the pass-catching weapons who could join him there — until Cleveland came with a deal that would be nearly impossible to refuse.”
Fournette met with the New England Patriots on Monday but ultimately decided to return to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a three-year deal. Landry could have ended up as teammates with Watson had he not been released by the Browns on March 14. The eight-year veteran remains a free agent as of Wednesday morning.
As for the Falcons, they failed to land Watson and moved on from arguably the greatest quarterback in franchise history in a matter of days. Atlanta on Monday traded Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts and promptly replaced him with Marcus Mariota.
