Report: Texans have had “very preliminary” contract talks with Deshaun Watson

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The Texans and left tackle Laremy Tunsil have come to agreement on a three-year contract extension, which means that the team can now turn its attention toward keeping quarterback Deshaun Watson in the fold for years to come.

Ed Werder of ESPN reports that the two sides have had “very preliminary” talks about a deal at this point. Werder adds that the team’s hope is to get a deal done before the start of the season.

Tunsil became the highest-paid tackle in the league and the presence of Patrick Mahomes may keep Watson from reaching that height at quarterback, but it promises to be another massive deal given the Texans’ explanation that they traded wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona to keep money on hand for Tunsil and Watson.

Watson is headed into his fourth season and the team has until May 4 to exercise their fifth-year option on his contract. That would buy more time to strike a deal if they can’t get one done this year, although any wait would allow room for Mahomes and other quarterbacks to push numbers at the position even higher.