It is quickly unraveling to become one of the more tragic tales of the NFL season, but Deshaun Watson’s struggles as the puppet master at the Cleveland Browns continue. Watson’s woes worsened following another defeat, this time to the Philadelphia Eagles (16-20), which took the Brown’s record to 1-5 for the season. It was another tough match for Watson who only completed 16/23 passes for 168 yards, and no touchdowns.
However, it was another statistic that stood out after the defeat. Watson was sacked five times, taking that unwanted tally to 31 for the season. We are only six matches into the regular season. The discussion whether to show faith in their star quarterback or take Watson out of the firing line rumbles on. In the meantime, other teams around the NFL are learning valuable lessons from this episode.
Control Contracts
It is not uncommon for NFL superstars, especially star quarterbacks drafted in the first round to receive eye-watering contracts. In fact, Watson was one of the quarterbacks to set the trend for huge contracts being dished out to quarterback leaders after he signed for the Browns from Houston Texans in 2022. Often bad luck strikes, like in the case of J.J. McCarthy who picked up a season ending meniscus injury in his preseason debut for the Minnesota Vikings against Las Vegas Raiders.
However, in the case of Watson, his recent fall from grace is a shining example of the pitfalls that come with handing out such long contracts. Watson can hardly be blamed. Who would turn down a five-year offer worth US$230 million, which includes a US$44,965,000 signing bonus? Oh, and it is fully guaranteed. Watson’s dramatic drop in performance can happen to any player, regardless of how much they are being paid, but if the focus is shifted away from Watson, there is an obvious risk behind handing out such long contracts.
Browns struggle to dig themselves out of their own hole
If the blame does not necessarily lie at Watson’s front door, then it can only lie on the doorstep of the Cleveland Browns. There was quiet confidence going into the regular season. Perhaps not the Super Bowl, but a strong season, nonetheless. Now, it is just tumbleweed blowing around. Hindsight is always a wonderful thing, but in handing out the long-term contract, the Browns have effectively locked themselves into a bind with Watson. Not playing him would be money down the drain. Playing a woefully out of form quarterback could be like trying to get blood out of a stone.
Forget the stone, head coach Kevin Stefanski is stuck between a rock and a hard place. He maintains that nobody is forcing him to play Watson, but often players can play themselves back into form, and Stefanski believes a Brown’s team with Watson leading the offense is the best approach. The lesson to be learned for other NFL teams is to take away the pressure that a high value long-term contract brings. Unfortunately for Stefanski, he is the guinea pig in this NFL experiment.
2024 write-off for Browns
Should a miracle occur, and Deshaun Watson rediscovers his arm, the Browns could rise from the pits with sports books essentially already writing off their chances of making the Super Bowl. The NFL odds today have Cleveland Browns behind the Washington Commanders and Chicago Bears, both with starting rookie quarterbacks, in the favorites list of teams to make the Super Bowl next February in New Orleans. Only Carolina Panthers and New England Patriots rank lower than Watson’s Browns. Whether the trade for Watson becomes one of the worst trades ever made in NFL history remains to be seen. One thing is for certain, other teams will not want to make the same mistake if it is.
