Getty Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns.
The Cleveland Browns are heavily invested in Deshaun Watson for the foreseeable future but don’t expect the quarterback to be “calling the shots” on any significant changes.
Watson signed a five-year, $230 million extension with the Browns following a trade last offseason from the Houston Texans. The contract was groundbreaking, seeing as it was fully guaranteed, and it sent ripple effects through the NFL. Watson is linked to the Browns through the 2026 season.
The Browns enter a new season with high expectations after missing the playoffs a year ago. Being on the outside looking on the postseason won’t be acceptable this season for the Browns and there could be some significant changes that come down if that were to happen.
While the Browns would consider Watson’s opinion on certain personnel decisions, team insider Mary Kay Cabot thinks his voice on larger decisions would be limited.
“The Browns will take Watson’s feelings into account in many ways, including the plays he likes to run and how much authority he has at the line of scrimmage. If he likes a certain player, the Browns will factor that in,” Cabot wrote in her latest mailbag column on July 3. ” If the Browns decide they need to make some changes, I don’t think Watson would have much of a say. That’s above his pay grade, and the Browns aren’t about to start letting players have that kind of influence.”
The Browns’ win total line for next season is 9.5.
Deshaun Watson Tuning Out Negative Noise
When it comes to his play on the field, Watson has impressed so far in offseason workouts. He’s looking to erase what was a fairly disappointing six-game stint last season in his debut season with the Browns. Coming off an 11-game suspension, Watson completed 58.2% of his passes for 1,102 yards and seven touchdowns with five interceptions. The team went 3-3 in his starts.
Watson has heard the noise that he might not be the quarterback he once was but he is tuning it out.
“I don’t say anything. That’s their own opinions. I know who I am, this organization knows who I am and the guys that I play with know who I am,” Watson said. “Everyone has their own opinions of what they want to say or how they want to–just the fact of last year. At the end of the day, I have an opportunity to go out there and prove what I need to prove in 2023. That’s what I’m focused on. I’m not focused on what anybody else has to say.”
Deshaun Watson Feeling More Comfortable With Browns
With a year under his belt in the Browns system, Watson is feeling a lot more comfortable. He’s built a solid foundation with Stefanski — who calls the plays — and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt.
“I’m pretty far ahead of where I was last year,” Watson said during minicamp. “Last year was, as far as football, being on the field, just running a new system, trying to adapt to different teammates, different players, how guys run routes, how Kevin calls the plays, and just being able to process the game at the speed I know. Being a year in and being able to talk to Kevin and AVP about what we want to do and being confident about it, it allows me to play a little bit faster when I’m on the field.”
Watson will have some additional weapons to work with this season as he looks to guide the Browns to the postseason. That includes Elijah Moore, Marquise Goodwin, rookie Cedric Tillman and tight end Jordan Akins.