Time is Running Out for Deshaun Watson and Browns' QB Gamble

In 2022, the Cleveland Browns made a very controversial trade with the Houston Texans to acquire quarterback Deshaun Watson. Watson entered the NFL as a first-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by the Texans and set the world on fire.

Through his first four seasons, the former Clemson product and National Champion had 104 touchdowns and 36 interceptions. He led the Texans during that time to two AFC South Division titles, including 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions during the 2020 season.

However, entering the 2021 season, Watson was involved in 22 civil court cases for sexual misconduct. Watson was not suspended by the league, but the Texans did not play him during the 2021 season.

Going into the 2022 offseason, Houston made Watson available via trade and allowed the quarterback to select which team he would like to be traded to, as he had a no-trade clause. Watson would choose Cleveland.

Once the trade went down, the opinions started flying. These opinions ranged from everything that had happened off the field that landed Watson in hot water, to the major package the Browns sent to the Houston Texans in the trade, along with the massive five-year $230 million fully guaranteed contract the Browns signed Watson to.

Since then, the noise surrounding Watson and the contract has only gotten louder and louder.

The NFL would suspend the quarterback for sexual misconduct following its investigation into his civil suits for 11 games to start the season. Watson would settle 21 of the 22 suits. Following his 11-game suspension, Watson made his official Browns debut in Week 13 at NRG Stadium in Houston, TX, against his former team.

The NFL can deny it all they want, but they intentionally made Watson's suspension 11 games, so he could make his Browns debut in Houston against his former team. Although, it would've been better if Watson had made his Browns debut in Miami against the Dolphins. Nonetheless, Watson started the game in Houston and the following five games. The Browns went 3-3 in those six games, defeating Houston, Baltimore, and Washington and losing to Cincinnati, New Orleans, and Pittsburgh.

Then in 2023, Watson started six games for the team, but those six starts did not go smoothly. Following the Browns' 27-3 win against the Titans in Week 3, Watson would suffer a shoulder injury that would hold him out until Week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts. In the first quarter of his return, Watson would suffer a concussion and leave the game following a 1/5 start. The Browns' $230 million quarterback would return for Week 9 against the Arizona Cardinals and Week 10 against the arch-rival Baltimore Ravens, the most notable game of Watson's brief Browns career thus far.

After trailing 17-9 at halftime in Baltimore, Watson came out of the locker room and went 14/14 in the passing game the rest of the way, leading the Browns on an improbable comeback to defeat the Ravens 33-31. That would be the last game Watson would play until the 2024 opener due to a separated shoulder.

People who believe Watson can still get back to the Houston version of himself immediately point to the Baltimore game, as well as the games against the Titans and the Cardinals. However, that’s only three out of 13 games the quarterback has started wearing Brown and Orange, which is pretty bad in the grand scheme of things.

In Cleveland’s 33-17 Week 1 loss against the Dallas Cowboys, Watson was 24/45 for 169 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. However, the statistics alone don’t tell the full story. There were way too many situations where the offense would go three-and-out and put the defense right back out on the field.

When the Browns were on offense, Watson would essentially only attempt short and intermediate passes and screen plays. The play-calling put in little-to-no effort to establish the run, as the Browns attempted 19 rushes for 93 yards. Since Cleveland didn’t put an effort into establishing the rushing game, Dallas was able to sit back and force Watson to try and beat them. Once Dallas realized  Cleveland had become one-dimensional, they pinned their ears back and tried to knock around Watson.

Star Linebacker/Defensive End Micah Parsons had one sack and four tackles, but he also impacted the game in other ways that didn’t show up on the box score, as he would force Watson to step up in the pocket so his teammates could close in and finish the job. 

Following his poor performance in Week 1 against the Cowboys, Watson has been heavily scrutinized and put under the microscope by fans and both the local and national media. Many are saying “Famous Jameis” Winston should be the starting QB in Week 2 when the Browns head down to Duval County to do battle with the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium.

Some even believe Watson -- even with his massive contract --  should stay on the bench and Winston should start the rest of the way for the 2024 season, even if that means the Browns have a poor season.

Once Watson got traded to Cleveland, and received that lucrative contract, the general consensus was Watson would get back to the Houston version of himself at some point, but that just hasn’t come to fruition in year three of the Watson Era in Cleveland. Now it truly feels as if that ship has sailed.

Watson doesn’t have any more excuses this season; it’s now or never for him. He had a horrible game in Week 1 against Dallas, so he has an opportunity to go down to Jacksonville and bounce back. However, if he has a poor game and the Browns fall to 0-2, the noise surrounding the former first-round talent is only going to get louder and louder and the calls for Winston to take over will only become more prevalent.        

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