4 Burning Questions Browns Must Answer During Bye Week

Week 5 of the 2023 NFL season is here and four teams are already on their bye, including the Cleveland Browns. Cleveland heads into its bye week following a disappointing 28-3 loss to the rival Baltimore Ravens that saw Kevin Stefanski's team drop to 2-2 — good for third in the AFC North.

The Browns are far from a perfect team, meaning the bye week must be used to iron out any kinks. The San Francisco 49ers come to town in Week 6 and we can't afford to start that game flat-footed.

With the fanbase looking for answers as to how the team can bounce back, here are four burning questions that Cleveland must answer during its bye week.

4 Browns Bye Week Burning Questions

1. How Healthy is Deshaun Watson?

After a disappointing start to the 2023 campaign, Deshaun Watson looked more like himself in Week 3. He completed 81.8% of passes for 289 yards and a pair of TDs, playing a big role in the Browns' 27-3 win over the Tennessee Titans.

Fans wanted to see more of the same last week, but unfortunately that wasn't the case. Although he was medically cleared to face the Ravens, Watson opted to sit out due to a shoulder injury that he suffered against the Titans.

That begs the question: how healthy is Watson?

On one hand, the fact that he was medically cleared is encouraging on paper. On the flip side, Watson knows his body better than anyone else and the fact that he didn't feel comfortable playing does raise some red flags.

Hopefully, the bye week is all Watson needs to put his shoulder injury in the rearview. Even if he isn't consistently putting up 300-yard games anymore, he's still a significant upgrade over backup QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson. We need Watson on the field to make the playoffs.

Hopefully Cleveland fans get some clarity in the coming days about whether Watson's injury is serious or not. We can't afford to head into Week 6 with that situation looming over us.