Deshaun Watson was hit hard during the first quarter against the Indianapolis Colts and the Cleveland Browns quarterback did not return to the game.
Watson was already dealing with a shoulder injury that made him questionable for the matchup but he appeared to suffer a concussion on the play, with his head bouncing off the turf at Lucas Oil Stadium. Watson remained on the ground for some time before heading to the medical tent.
Watson emerged from the tent and stood next to offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt on the sideline with PJ Walker running the offense. The Browns were able to find the end zone on their first drive without Watson, with Kareem Hunt punching it in to tie the game at 14-14.
Watson went back into the medical tent during the drive but his status is still unknown. When he emerged, he sat next to Walker and Van Pelt on the sideline.
On the CBS broadcast, Aditi Kinkhabwala reported that Watson was evaluated for a concussion but was cleared. He kept ahold of his helmet and the Browns said there’s nothing to report on the shoulder.
Watson did not look good in his time on the field. He completed just 1 of 5 passes for five yards and also tossed an interception. He nearly tossed his second on the play he was injured on but it was overturned, with the ball hitting the ground.
Deshaun Watson Didn’t Want to Play if it Hurt Team
Watson and the Browns were being very careful with his injury. He missed a pair of games and did not practice until the latter part of the week. Watson did not want to put himself on the field if he felt he’d hurt the team because he was limited.
“This is my first time dealing with a rotator cuff, so I’m just trying to get as comfortable as I possibly can to go out there and perform at the level I know I can. And if I can’t, then we just got to continue to take it day to day,” Watson said on Wednesday, October 18. “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.”
The injury saga appeared to be over with Watson starting against the Colts, but this latest wrinkle adds yet another layer to his status going forward.
PJ Walker Needs to Improve After Browns’ Debut
The Browns have installed Walker as the No. 2 quarterback in Cleveland, bumping rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson on the depth chart. Thompson-Robinson started against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4 but tossed three interceptions and did not look sharp.
Walker did enough in his lone start this season to help the Browns get a big win against the San Francisco 49ers. However, it wasn’t pretty. He completed 53% of his passes for 192 yards and two interceptions.
“He battled. He’s going to tell you he wishes he had a couple of plays back like all quarterbacks do. That’s kind of what we talk about,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said after beating the 49ers. “We’re striving for perfection, but it’s hard to attain it. But he made some throws, he made some plays, he ran the show. So that’s what he does. He’s a battler. He’s a tough kid.”
With Watson out of the game against the Colts, the Browns relied heavily on the run.
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Browns QB Deshaun Watson Exits Against Colts With Scary Injury