The offseason has begun, and all 32 teams are preparing to make a plethora of moves before the 2024 NFL season. When the new league year starts on March 13, all teams can sign free agents and make trades once again.
Recently, NFL media personality Mike Tannenbaum suggested that two teams should trade quarterbacks. What are the details?
Mike Tannenbaum Suggests Trading Deshaun Watson and Daniel Jones
According to Tannenbaum, the Cleveland Browns should trade Deshaun Watson and a 2024 second-round pick to the New York Giants for Daniel Jones. He believes the Giants have a better shot to win with Watson, and the deal would allow the Browns an out from Watson’s deal.
“Right now, if you’re the Giants, how in the world do you win the NFC when you have to beat San Francisco, Green Bay, Philly, and Detroit with Daniel Jones,” Tannenbaum said on ESPN’s Get Up. “To me, Deshaun Watson hasn’t played well the last couple of years, but he has a high upside, and he’s only 29 years old”
Watson played in just six games in 2023 due to suffering multiple injuries, including a season-ending shoulder surgery. He passed for 1,115 yards, seven touchdowns, and four interceptions. In his two seasons with Cleveland, he’s passed for 2,217 yards, 14 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.
After the blockbuster trade that sent Watson to the Browns, he was signed to a five-year, $230 million deal, fully guaranteed. The deal was, and still is, the most guaranteed money in a contract in NFL history. Over the next three years (2024-2026), Watson will have a base salary of $46 million and a cap hit of $63.9 million each year.
Jones, on the other hand, also played just six games in 2023 due to suffering a torn ACL. He passed for 909 yards, two touchdowns, and six interceptions. In his five seasons with New York, he’s passed for 12,512 yards, 62 touchdowns, and 40 interceptions. He also has 1,914 yards and 13 touchdowns on the ground and a 22-36-1 record.
Jones signed a four-year, $160 million deal following the 2022 season. The deal included $92 million guaranteed. He will have a $35.5 million base salary and a $47.1 million cap hit in 2024. There is, however, a potential out in his contract following the 2024 season.
“To me, you need a frontline difference-making quarterback,” Tannenbaum said about the Giants’ quarterback situation. One of his ESPN colleagues, Louis Riddick, used a “speechless emoji” in response to a social media post on the idea.
“Why not talk about things that possibly could happen,” Rick Pitino, head coach of the St. John’s Red men’s basketball team, said on X (formerly known as Twitter). “Give Danny Dimes some protection and he will be terrific. Patience is a virtue – no more Geno Smith’s becoming outstanding elsewhere.”
MORE: Daniel Jones on the Hot Seat?
Tannenbaum is a former NFL general manager for the New York Jets. He worked as a player personnel assistant for both the Browns and New Orleans Saints in 1995 and 1996 before joining the Jets. He worked with the Jets from 1997 until 2012, becoming general manager in 2006.
After his time with the Jets, Tannenbaum worked as the executive vice president of football operations for the Miami Dolphins from 2015-2018. After that, he joined ESPN as an NFL front-office insider in April 2019.
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