Deshaun Watson delivered a win the Cleveland Browns desperately needed, but Michael Irvin says he should still brace for boos when he returns home.
The Hall of Fame receiver offered a blunt assessment on ESPN’s “First Take” after Watson helped Cleveland beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23-19. With the Carolina Panthers visiting for Sunday’s home opener, Irvin predicted that one productive afternoon would do little to change Watson’s standing with the crowd.
“I cannot wait to see what this will be when he walks into that stadium this weekend. They are going to boo him straight off the bat. I don’t care that you won one game. It won’t change anything in Cleveland,” Irvin said.
Watson gave the Browns reason for optimism against Tampa Bay, completing 24 of 30 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Cleveland improved to 1-1 after opening the season with a loss to Jacksonville.
Irvin went further than questioning whether Watson could win over the fans. He suggested the Browns themselves had been looking for a reason to move on.
“This is the last thing the Cleveland Browns wanted. They didn’t want him to win this game. They wanted to end this thing right there. This is the last thing they wanted and it happened. He won the game,” Irvin said.
Browns See More Growth Ahead for Deshaun Watson
Monken named Watson the Browns’ offensive player of the game and praised his willingness to use his legs and play with confidence. He also pointed to Watson’s extended layoff and the adjustment to a new offense as reasons to expect further improvement.
“I mean, there’s a lot of football left in him, he just hasn’t played in a while,” Monken said. “I see him as still a very young player that is going to continue to grow.”
Monken also noted that splitting first-team repetitions during the quarterback competition helped Shedeur Sanders develop but limited Watson’s time with the players he would eventually lead. Monken expects Watson and the offense to keep improving together.
Browns Need Deshaun Watson to Deliver Again
Watson played in Tampa Bay with his future in Cleveland under scrutiny. Another poor outing would have strengthened the argument for turning to Sanders. Instead, he delivered two second-half touchdown passes and helped the Browns escape with a badly needed victory to move to 1-1.
Rookie Denzel Boston supplied the first score on a 55-yard reception. Watson later found Blake Whiteheart for the go-ahead 17-yard touchdown, and Cleveland’s defense protected the lead after a lengthy weather delay.
The next step is making that level of play something Cleveland can count on. Monken has already made clear to Watson how he believes he can stop the boos and change the conversation.
“The way we make this go away is to play good football. We’ve got to own that,” Monken said in August.
Watson delivered with his job under pressure in Tampa Bay. Now he needs to do it again in front of his home crowd — boos or not.
Hall of Famer Warns Browns QB Deshaun Watson