When the Cleveland Browns traded for quarterback Deshaun Watson amid his ongoing civil lawsuits for sexual misconduct, no one viewed it as a bad trade because of his talent. It was the off-field baggage that came with Watson that detoured teams and helped him end up in Cleveland, but he’s struggled to look like the quarterback he once was.
The Browns gave up three first-round picks, two fourth-round picks, and a third-round pick in exchange for Watson’s services in March 2022 after he sat out the 2021 season while dealing tending to his legal matters. In 2020, he led the NFL in passing yards (4,823) and solidified himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
The Browns fanbase was excited about his arrival to Cleveland as a team that has never had a true franchise quarterback, but he has failed to live up to the lofty expectations. After serving a 10-game suspension last season as punishment for his role in the sexual misconduct civil lawsuits, he looked like a shell of the former quarterback he was with the Texans.
The Browns went 3-3 in his six starts and he averaged a career-low 183.7 passing yards per game on a career-low 58.1 completion percentage. 2023 was supposed to be an opportunity for Watson to turn it around after having a full offseason to focus on his game instead of his legal battles, but that hasn’t been the case.
Through two games, his completion percentage is even lower now than it was last season (55.1) and he has a one-to-one touchdown-to-interception ratio.
With Browns star running back Nick Chubb now out for the season after suffering a gruesome knee injury, it is on Watson to step up and deliver after the team rewarded him with a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract extension after the team traded for him.
If he can’t turn it around soon, this trade will go down as one of the worst in NFL history.
