Tag: Deshaun Watson

NFL insider hints at Browns’ future plans in their quarterback room

Insider Albert Breer seems to indicate Watson’s time as the undisputed starter are over.

One NFL insider has hinted at how the Cleveland Browns will handle quarterback Deshaun Watson and their quarterback room heading into the offseason.

First, ESPN insider Adam Schefter confidently stated that firing head coach Kevin Stefanski is not even on the table for the Browns. Now in the pregame festivities before Thursday Night Football, sideline reporter Albert Breer provided more insight on how the Browns might approach their quarterback position in 2025.

“I’ve been told that rather than look to build him up with what’s around him the way they have the way they have the last couple of years, that’s one reason why Joe Flacco isn’t there anymore, they are going to look to put competition in the quarterback room either through the draft or free agency.”

It sure sounds like, despite the money owed to Watson over the next two seasons, that the Browns are looking to get better. That starts with the quarterback position. Sitting at 2-8 on the season, the Browns may have a chance to land a name like Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.

Browns name their starting QB for Week 11 vs. Saints

Jameis Winston will get to start against his former team in Week 11. The former Saints QB is going to lead the Browns out of the tunnel at the Caesars Superdome:

Jameis Winston will get to start against his former team in Week 11. The former New Orleans Saints quarterback is going to lead the Cleveland Browns out of the tunnel next Sunday at the Caesars Superdome. Winston stepped into the lineup after injuries sidelined Deshaun Watson and Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and he hasn’t looked back.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced Monday that Winston will remain the team’s starter coming out of their bye week, which means Winston has an opportunity to beat the last team he suited up for. Winston spent the last four years of his career with New Orleans, but he’s played against the Saints before. He started five seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So what was his record against the black and gold?

Winston went 3-9 against the Saints during his time with Tampa Bay, throwing nearly as many interceptions (10) as touchdowns (11) and taking 24 sacks. He’s grown a lot since then but  remains a volatile passer with 5 touchdowns and 3 interceptions in just two starts with the Browns.

So we’ll see if he can take advantage of a banged-up Saints secondary to make some plays on Sunday. Winston made a lot of friends in the New Orleans locker room during his four years with the team, but when they kick off this week it’ll be all-business between thee whistles.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5]

Browns refuse to commit to Deshaun Watson in 2025

Andrew Berry spoke to the media and declined to give much feedback on Watson, including any commitment into 2025.

The Deshaun Watson era for the Cleveland Browns has been a massive stain on the franchise. He has missed more games than he has played, and it looks like his tenure will finish with that being the case.

General manager Andrew Berry addressed the media on Tuesday during the team’s bye week, refusing to commit to Watson as the quarterback of the future in Cleveland.

Instead, Berry diverted any question about Watson’s future back to his recovery, maintaining that is where their focus is at. The general manager continued to beat around the bush, stating the offense didn’t play well, refusing to reflect on the trade and its success as a whole, and more.

But throughout the entire press conference, Berry never once stated that Watason was their future quarterback or that he would be their starting quarterback in 2025. This is not a great vote of confidence for the quarterback.

Given the cap implications, the Browns will still likely roster Watson. This looks like a case where they may just healthy scratch him the entire season, keep a third quarterback on the practice squad, and operate under a 52-man roster until they can eventually cut him in the Spring of 2026.

3 bold predictions for Chargers in Week 9 vs. Browns

The Chargers travel to Cleveland for a big AFC game that could play a decisive role in the postseason down the road.

If the Chargers want a legitimate shot at the postseason, they will have to start reeling off consecutive victories. There’s no better chance to do so than this weekend against a fellow AFC squad in the Browns.

Despite being on the road in Cleveland, Los Angeles is a 1.5-point favorite in Week 9. Without further ado, here are some bold predictions for this weekend’s matchup.

Ladd McConkey records his second consecutive 100+ yard game

No Charger had a 100+ yard receiving game until Week 8. That is until McConkey racked up a career-high 111 receiving yards against the Saints. The rookie continues to improve each passing week, and he’s established himself as Justin Herbert’s favorite weapon. In Week 9, McConkey should be able to take advantage of the Browns in the slot. Their best cornerback, Denzel Ward, primarily resides on the outside. Without many true threats on the outside, expect the Bolts to continue feeding McConkey a heavy dose of targets.

Chargers win the turnover battle by 2+

The Browns are one of the worst teams in the NFL regarding turnover margin. They are tied for 25th with a -4 turnover differential, albeit most of these numbers did come with Deshaun Watson at quarterback. On the flip side, the Chargers rank fifth with a margin of +6. It’s been a large reason why they have a winning record. Herbert’s ability to protect the football has been the main contributor to the turnover differential, as he has thrown just one interception in 196 pass attempts this season.

Despite appearing in just 99 games in his career, Jameis Winston ranks eighth amongst active quarterbacks in interceptions with 99. His interception rate is the highest among the top-25 in interception leaders. While he remains a better option than Watson, the Chargers defense should be able to take advantage of his aggressive playstyle.

Defense racks up 4+ sacks

No team in the NFL has given up more sacks in 2024 than the Cleveland Browns. They’ve given up six more sacks (37) than the next team in line. Couple that with the fact that Joey Bosa seems likely to play, and this prediction doesn’t even feel all that bold. Khalil Mack has been tremendous this season, so I expect him to get into that action as well.

What could have been if the Browns hadn’t waited

What would the Browns’ record be if they had played Winston earlier?

The Cleveland Browns started Jameis Winston after the injury to Deshaun Watson and found immediate offensive success they had not seen all season.

Defeating the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 29-24, Winston threw for 343 yards and three touchdowns for the Browns, including a deep bomb to Cedric Tillman with under a minute to play to put his team back on top.

Before Winston took the field for the Browns this week, the Browns ranked 30th in Expected Points Added (EPA) per game and dead last in success rate. In Week 8? They jumped to 11th in EPA per play and 13th in success rate.

Was Winston perfect? No, he was not.

However, even in drives that ended in punts, Winston was able to sustain a bit and give the defense a rest. The against the Washington Commanders and Dallas Cowboys slipped away largely because the defense did not have time to catch their breath due to constant failures on the offensive side of the ball.

This defense is good enough to carry the Browns through some offensive struggles, but not constant three-and-outs. Winston proved on Sunday that he can give the Browns positives.

He will give them negatives as well, losing one fumble in an avoidable area of he field and throwing the ball up for grabs on multiple occasions, but he also gives the Browns something they haven’t seen since Joe Flacco departed: explosive plays down the field.

So this begs the question: if the Browns had made the switch sooner, where would their season be? We are playing the hypothetical game at this point, but sitting at 2-6 on the season after the win against the Ravens what else do we have?

Four of the games the Browns lost were by one score, and in all of those games, they had plenty of offensive opportunities to win the game. What if Winston had been the backup against the Cincinnati Bengals last week instead of the emergency third quarterback?

Games like that against the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders, and perhaps even the Philadelphia Eagles have different outcomes. With the offensive output the Browns got yesterday, volatile yet explosive, combined with their defense when given the time to rest is a combination worth wondering about.

There is a real chance this team would be sitting at 5-3 on the season if Watson had been benched at halftime of the Giants game. The worst case scenario when playing out this hypothetical is sitting at 4-4 entering a pretty easy stretch of their schedule.

Instead, the Browns succumbed to the Sunk Cost Fallacy and decided to see it through with Watson despite finding his name at the bottom of a handful of metrics used to evaluate quarterback play.

What could have been?

Steelers are now first place in the AFC North following Ravens’ loss

The Browns pulled off an unbelievable win by beating the 5-2 Ravens, 29-24. The Steelers are now 1st in the AFC North following the upset.

Jaws have dropped in Pittsburgh. The Cleveland Browns have done the unthinkable, pulling off an upset victory against the Baltimore Ravens. While Steelers fans wish both rivals could have lost on Sunday, Pittsburgh now holds a half-game lead over the Ravens in the divisional race.

The Cleveland Browns entered the contest with an abysmal 1-6 record and were tasked with the impossible—stopping the 5-2 Ravens and their dynamic offense in Week 8. Browns’ starting QB Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending torn Achilles, leaving backup QB Jameis Winston to take over the signal-calling duties. 

Winston stepped up in a big way for his team, and in some ways for the Black and Gold faithful, as he threw a game-deciding TD pass with 59 seconds remaining to seal the win against the Ravens. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers are poised to improve their record to 6-2 against the New York Giants, furthering their lead in the AFC North divisional race, on Monday Night Football, October 28th at 8:15 PM EST.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Jameis Winston broke the 4th wall in possibly rehearsed pregame interview before his Browns start

Jameis Winston is auditioning for a movie that doesn’t even exist.

Just one week after prominent Cleveland Browns figures like Myles Garrett embarrassed themselves with weird defenses of an injured Deshaun Watson — who once faced more than 20 allegations of sexual misconduct in what the NFL would later characterize as “predatory behavior” — backup Jameis Winston got the start against the rival Baltimore Ravens.

Winston didn’t disappoint when he was as corny as possible during his pregame interview on CBS. Winston broke the fourth wall while delivering random nonsequiturs about believing in himself and his teammates to answer an anodyne, cliche question about how he feels about starting again.

It’s almost as if Winston was auditioning for a role in a movie … that doesn’t even exist:

Why is Winston looking at the camera like that? Why couldn’t he just answer the question in a normal way? What is happening?

So many questions and so few answers.

Deshaun Watson’s recovery timeline revealed after Achilles injury

Deshaun Watson faces at least a nine month recovery

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is scheduled to have his ruptured Achilles tendon repaired on Friday, according to reports.

The quarterback suffered his season-ending injury in last Sunday’s contest against the Cincinnati Bengals. He was attempting to escape the pocket and run for positive yardage when he sustained the non-contact injury.

Green Bay Packers team physician Dr. Robert Anderson will complete his surgery. He was named NFL Team Physician of the Year in 2016. He most recently was honored with the President’s Award by the NFL Physicians Society (NFLPS) and the Professional Football Athletic Trainers (PFATS).

Many fans are unconcerned with Watson’s injuries, hoping that he will not be on the roster when he is fully healthy. Whether he stays in Cleveland or not, the Browns will need to start planning for a quarterback for the foreseeable future at a minimum. With the quarterback out for the rest of 2024, the team is unlikely to provide an update on his rehabilitation situation any time soon.

Report: Browns to start QB Jameis Winston vs. Ravens in critical Week 8 matchup

The Cleveland Browns are going to start Jameis Winston at quarterback vs. Baltimore Ravens in critical Week 8 matchup

The Ravens (5-2) are headed to Cleveland to face a Browns team (1-6) looking for a win and stave off playoff elimination before Week 10.

Cleveland lost quarterback Deshaun Watson for the season after he tore his Achilles in last Sunday’s loss to the Commanders.

According to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, Zac Jackson, and Alex Andrejev report, the Browns plan to start quarterback Jameis Winston for Sunday’s matchup against the AFC North-leading Ravens.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who replaced Watson, suffered a finger injury in the fourth quarter. On Tuesday, the Browns also signed Bailey Zappe off the Chiefs’ practice squad to help bolster their quarterback room as they prepare for Baltimore.

Browns sign Bailey Zappe after placing Deshaun Watson on IR

The Browns have picked up Bailey Zappe as QB insurance

The Achilles injury that ended Deshaun Watson’s season has led to the Cleveland Browns making moves on Tuesday.

The Browns placed Watson on IR. His season was over after he tore an Achilles on Sunday in the loss to the Cleveland Browns.

Cleveland then signed Bailey Zappe off the Kansas City Chiefs practice squad. That would be the Zappe who spent time in New England.

Jameis Winston seems like the logical candidate to start for Cleveland against Baltimore in Week Eight. Zappe and Dorian Thompson-Robinson are also in the mix.

Zappe made eight starts in New England, completing 63.2% of his passes for 2,053 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.