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Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson addressed the media on Wednesday, marking his first public statement since his shoulder injury sidelined him for two games.
Watson did not provide a firm timeline for a return, with a matchup with the Indianapolis Colts looming on Sunday.
“It could be any day. It could be tomorrow. It could be Sunday,” Watson said. “It could be two weeks from now. I’m not sure. I can’t put a timeline on anything right now.”
Watson hinted on social media that this could be the week that he returns but sounded a bit more uncertain in person while speaking to reporters. He made it clear that it’s not a pain issue that’s keeping him off the field. Watson simply doesn’t want to put himself in the game if he feels he can’t help the team and is limited with his throwing ability.
“I’m not going to put the team in jeopardy if I can’t do certain things that is going to allow us to be handicapped in certain situations. So that’s the reason why I haven’t been able to step on the field,” Watson said. “It’s not so much of the pain. It’s mostly if I can throw the football. The pain, I can deal with certain pain tolerance, but if I can’t control the football, I can’t throw the football with no velocity; if I can’t throw the football more than a certain amount of yards, then like I said before, then I don’t want to handicap the team because then I can’t get the ball downfield and I can’t get the ball outside the numbers and things like that.”
Deshaun Watson Says Injury is Rotator Cuff Strain
Not much had been known about Watson’s injury. The team first characterized it as a shoulder contusion but it was later reported to be a rotator cuff contusion. Watson says he’s dealing with a rotator cuff strain and a micro tear.
“It’s a strain. It’s a strain. It’s a micro tear, so it’s small,” Watson said. “It’s basically like getting a cut on the hand, a couple of slashes on the hand of that muscle. And that’s what a micro tear strain for the rotator cuff.”
The Browns have a 2-1 record in Watson’s starts this season. He is completing his passes at a 63.7 percent clip and has accounted for four touchdowns and two interceptions. His most recent game was the most promising of his Browns career, passing for 289 yards and two scores in a win against the Tennessee Titans.
Deshaun Watson Says ‘Arrow Trending Up’
Watson did not practice on Wednesday and still has not practiced this week. But the three-time Pro Bowler is still working diligently to get back on the field with his rehab process.
“We’ve been trying to just nick at it each and every day. We got to take some days off because you can’t do too much,” Watson said. “It’s coming along. The arrow’s been trending up, so each and every day, we’ve just been trying to get better and better and try to get as comfortable as possible.”
The Browns face the Colts (3-3) this week and are looking to move to 4-2 this season to keep pace in a very competitive AFC North.
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Browns QB Deshaun Watson Breaks Silence on Facing Colts