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Browns GM defends trade for Deshaun Watson amid uncertain future: ‘We were all on board’

Posted on by Pranco
Browns GM defends trade for Deshaun Watson amid uncertain future: ‘We were all on board’

The Browns saw a vision of a dream season after reaching the playoffs in 2023. If that team could win 11 games despite using four quarterbacks, what was Cleveland’s ceiling with a healthy Deshaun Watson?

Nothing has gone to plan, with or without Watson on the field. The embattled quarterback struggled mightily when healthy, taking sack after sack behind a porous offensive line. The Browns’ season had already been derailed when he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in October.

With Cleveland’s playoff hopes wiped out, questions are already being raised about Watson’s future with the franchise. Gaining the fanbase’s trust doesn’t seem likely if Watson starts again, but his contract makes it extremely difficult for the Browns to move on at all.

Still, GM Andrew Berry expresses no regrets about the trade that brought Watson to Cleveland.

Here’s a look at what Berry had to say and what Watson’s future might hold.

MORE: Complete the NFL trade deadline numbers

Browns GM defends Deshaun Watson trade

The Browns gave up six draft picks, including three first-round picks, to acquire Watson from the Texans in 2022, which also gave him a fully guaranteed contract extension. Berry does not yet want to admit that he regrets those decisions.

“We were all on board” with the trade, Berry told reporters Wednesday, defending the organization’s thought process in pursuing the former Texans star.

The Browns were initially believed to be out of the 2022 Watson sweepstakes with the Falcons, Saints and Panthers still in it, but the situation changed after Baker Mayfield requested a trade.

Despite the way Watson’s tenure has gone, it should come as no surprise that Berry is unwilling to admit defeat. Not only is Watson still with the team, but his contract essentially forces him to remain with the team through 2025. Berry probably doesn’t believe it would be helpful to throw a player under the bus, even if that player played a role in derailing the club. franchise.

When will Deshaun Watson return?

Watson should be ready for the start of the 2025 season after recovering from a torn Achilles tendon. Falcons QB Kirk Cousins ​​suffered an Achilles tendon injury in late October of last season and could undoubtedly return for Week 1 this season. That puts Watson on track to be healthy by Week 1 of 2025.

However, that is not the burning question when it comes to Watson’s future. He may be healthy, but do the Browns plan to enter 2025 with him as the starter?

“Our focus organizationally is again on making sure he gets healthy,” Berry told reporters Wednesday, sidestepping questions about Watson’s future in Cleveland.

One comment was telling, however, as Berry said, “It’s always possible.” Watson is back under center for the Browns. That could be interpreted as Watson not playing against the Browns — or at least not starting — as the most likely scenario.

So the most likely scenario could be that Watson will serve as a high-priced backup in 2025 because of how difficult it is for the Browns to get out of his contract. Here’s a look at his mega-deal and what it would cost Cleveland to cut ties with Watson after this season.

MORE: Review of the Browns-Lions trade involving Za’Darius Smith

Deshaun Watson contract

Watson signed a fully guaranteed five-year contract extension worth $230 million after being traded to the Browns in 2022. The deal runs until 2026.

Watson’s salary cap hit this season is just $27.9 million due to a contract restructure, and his deal doesn’t make him the highest-paid quarterback in terms of average value. In fact, Watson ranks all the way down to 10th in the league with $46 million. All nine quarterbacks above him recently signed extensions.

Terminating the contract after 2024 isn’t realistic, no matter how much the Browns want to move on. An outright release would give the Browns a dead cap hit of $172.77 million in 2025, which is more than unsustainable. Even if Watson is designated as a post-June 1 release, his dead cap hit would be just under $119 million.

This was the risk Cleveland took when it gave Watson a fully guaranteed contract, and it appears he will be on the roster in 2024 with a cap hit of $72 million. Whether he will start for the Browns is much less certain.

Deshaun Watson stats

Season Team Begins Comp. Recruiting T.D INT Rat.
2017 Texans 6 61.8^ 1,699 19 8 103.0
2018 Texans 16 68.3% 4,165 26 9 103.1
2019 Texans 15 67.3% 3,852 26 12 98.0
2020 Texans 16 70.2% 4,823 33 7 112.4
2022 Tanning 6 58.2% 1,102 7 5 79.1
2023 Tanning 6 61.4% 1,115 7 4 84.3
2024 Tanning 7 63.4% 1,148 5 3 79.0
Career 72 66.2% 17,904 123 48 98.8

Watson threw 33 touchdowns and just seven interceptions in his final football season in Houston, but he didn’t come close to that production in 19 starts with the Browns. With 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, Watson’s passer rating in a Browns uniform is nearly 24 points lower than his rating with the Texans.

Whether it’s due to injury, the mental impact of the sexual harassment scandal, or both, Watson hasn’t been the same player as the Browns’ starter in any of his three partial seasons. Cleveland gave him the benefit of the doubt in 2024, but it’s hard to imagine the franchise taking the same approach in 2025.