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The cost of a franchise quarterback in today’s NFL

By Sayre Bedinger

Apr 28, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith (left) and Texans first round draft pick Deshaun Watson (middle left) and vice chairman D. Cal McNair (middle right) and head coach Bill O'Brien (right) pose for a picture during a press conference at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 28, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith (left) and Texans first round draft pick Deshaun Watson (middle left) and vice chairman D. Cal McNair (middle right) and head coach Bill O'Brien (right) pose for a picture during a press conference at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 28, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith (left) and Texans first round draft pick Deshaun Watson (middle left) and vice chairman D. Cal McNair (middle right) and head coach Bill O’Brien (right) pose for a picture during a press conference at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 28, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans general manager Rick Smith (left) and Texans first round draft pick Deshaun Watson (middle left) and vice chairman D. Cal McNair (middle right) and head coach Bill O’Brien (right) pose for a picture during a press conference at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports /

DeShaun Watson, Houston Texans

The Houston Texans signed Brock Osweiler to a $72 million contract last offseason. The Cleveland Browns this offseason did them a huge favor by taking Osweiler off their hands in exchange for the Texans’ 2nd round pick, which should probably be figured into this formula.

In 2018, the Houston Texans won’t have a pick until the third round, but they will have DeShaun Watson.

The cost of finding a quarterback for Houston has been other-worldly. They failed in a bad way with the Osweiler experiment, but the defense and team overall was good enough last year that it put them in a bad situation near the bottom of the first round of the draft.

They almost had to move up and get someone after both Trubisky and Mahomes went in the top 10, and the Browns were once again willing to do business.

Cleveland came away with an extra first round pick in this deal in next year’s draft, but the Texans I think came away with the only quarterback in this year’s first round that really has a chance to start as a rookie and make a significant impact.

Still, getting rid of their top two picks in 2018 is a high price to pay.

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