Deshaun Watson’s thoughts on Davante Adams on the trading block and his confidence in Amari Cooper

With Adams, 31, preferring to go to the Jets with Aaron Rodgers or the Saints with Derek Carr according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Browns might not be on his short list of destinations. But that won’t stop the Browns from at least conducting an investigation like they do with most of the big-name players who can help them rise to the top. They discussed trading for the 49ers’ Brandon Aiyuk and other No. 1-caliber receivers during the offseason, particularly with five-time Pro Bowler Amari Cooper in the final year of his contract.

As for Hopkins, 32, he has a natural connection with Watson from their three years together in Houston from 2017 to 2019, during which Hopkins made three consecutive Pro Bowls.

But Watson is trying harder to be on the same page with all of his receivers, including Cooper, who he still has the most confidence in. Cooper let a perfectly thrown deep ball over the middle bounce off his chest in Sunday’s 20-16 loss at Vegas, and the Raiders recovered it and converted it into a touchdown for a 20-10 lead. On the final play of the game, Cooper also apparently didn’t give up the safety quickly enough on fourth-and-3 from 9, and Watson was sacked for a 10-yard loss late in the game.

“Things happen in the end,” Watson said. “Sometimes the ball doesn’t bounce your way, so at the end of the day we move on to the next play and he knows I’ll come back to him no matter what the situation or what happened. So we give him I trust him. I have one hundred percent trust in Coop and every time I need to give him the ball and give him an opportunity, he usually makes those plays. to that percentage rather than a few plays that didn’t happen.

Cooper also slowed down in his first two games before bouncing back with a nice effort in the loss to the Giants. In Vegas, he had an 82-yard touchdown run overturned by a holding call against backup center Nick Harris, and was the first to leave the field after the game. He was gone by the time the reporters entered the locker room.

“I think he’s OK, to be honest,” Watson said.

In four games, Cooper has caught 16 of 34 targets (47.1%) for 148 yards and 2 touchdowns, second in receptions and yards among receivers behind Jerry Jeudy (18 of 197, 1 TD). He also dropped four passes, including two probable touchdowns.

“I would say it’s unusual,” Stefanski said. “Amari made some big plays for us this season, last season. He’s been a big part of what we do, so he’ll continue to work.

As for how he’s handled the inconsistent start, Stefanski said, “he wants to help win the football, being a big part of what we do offensively.” So obviously you’re disappointed when a result doesn’t suit you, but he’s determined to improve.

The Browns, without David Njoku the past three games, are also trying to find ways to get the ball more to Elijah Moore, who caught his only Vegas target for 11 yards. In total, he caught 12 of 18 targets (66.7%) for 81 yards.

“You see all this and then you kind of understand,” Watson said. “We definitely want his talent to be able to shine for this offense and we just have to come to terms with the staff and how the game and the game decisions are planned. Ultimately you have to focus on the placing the ball in the right position You can’t start forcing anything.

Likewise, second-year receiver Cedric Tillman, who dropped the fourth pass in the loss to the Giants, played only nine snaps in Vegas and was not targeted.

“It comes down to how the game is played,” Watson said. “And how they plot for us, and what kind of plays they are called, and which is the first, second reading and if I can go back to my third, fourth reading. I’m trying to find the open guy as early as possible, get the ball out of my hand so we can create some positivity. We definitely have some very talented guys and their opportunity is definitely going to present itself.

Stefanski brushed off the lack of targets for Tillman, who has caught 3 of 4 this season for 9 yards.

“It’s the start of the season and in these games, game by game, I wouldn’t overrate or look at the targets at this stage,” he said. “There are so many things we can do better and we think highly of Ced as a player, so he’s someone who will help us.”

Watson understood that Jeudy took it upon himself this week to work on his conditioning after feeling gassed at times in Vegas, but he thinks that’s not a problem.

“If we capitalize on that fourth play and we score, we won’t have those conversations,” Watson said. “Every week we have to find ways to improve. You just have to be real with yourself, real with the team and that’s what we do every week, not just because we failed. That’s just how great teams work, and once you figure it out and build that trust, all you need is one win to start a streak and you never know what can arrive.

Stefanski also felt that Jeudy, who missed most of the offseason program, mandatory minicamp and much of training camp due to his knee injury, saying he missed some reps because he was tired, was much ado about nothing.

“He’s in great football shape,” he said. “Of course there will be plays – I think back to the play that came back, the 82-yarder – the guys were tired and needed a shot. So you’re going to need a break here and there, but he’s still going to continue to get into position to be able to stay on the field.

Watson, who needs every reliable target he can get, is eager to get Njoku back, perhaps Sunday at Washington. Last season, Njoku finished second in targets, behind Cooper.

“That would be huge for this offense,” Watson said. “He plays a big role in this system and what we want to do offensively. We’ll see how this week goes and we’ll definitely be happy if he can make it to the game. So he’s definitely an important part of this system and what we want to do offensively.

Watson said the offense has been doing some soul-searching among itself in a player-only setting.

“We did it,” he said. “There’s nothing else that everyone doesn’t know or anything like that. This is something we don’t talk about publicly. We keep this in-house.

Regardless of the rumors and speculation about the receiving corps, including one from ESPN’s Adam Schefter who mentioned Cooper as a potential trade target for the Chiefs, Watson loves the room.

“It’s great,” he said. “We have a lot of talent in that receiver room and we have a lot of guys that have a lot of opportunities to go out there and make explosive plays. We have to give them chances and once they have those chances, those opportunities, we all have to capitalize to be on the same page.