Browns lose Deshaun Watson for rest of 2023 season
The Cleveland Browns have suffered a significant blow: Deshaun Watson is out for the rest of the 2023 season.Per a team statement, Watson underwent MRIs on two different injuries after Sunday's win over the Baltimore Ravens. One MRI revealed a high-ankle sprain and the other "revealed a displaced fracture to the glenoid". The latter injury […]
The Cleveland Browns have suffered a significant blow: Deshaun Watson is out for the rest of the 2023 season.
Per a team statement, Watson underwent MRIs on two different injuries after Sunday's win over the Baltimore Ravens. One MRI revealed a high-ankle sprain and the other "revealed a displaced fracture to the glenoid". The latter injury requires surgery, which in return, means Watson is done for the year.
The timing of Watson's surgery is awful
The Browns just pulled off a huge win over the rival Ravens, which kept them in the race for first place in the AFC North. Now, the team will lean on P.J. Walker to help them stay on track for a postseason berth, where it currently holds the conference's sixth seed.
Not only was it a big win, but Watson played pretty well and made some big plays. For all of his shortcomings, the team is 5-1 with him as a starter in 2023.
The three-time Pro Bowler completed 61.4% of his passes for 1,115 passing yards and seven passing touchdowns, along with four interceptions. He'll finish the year with a 44.7 QBR rating (ESPN's metric, not the traditional quarterback rating) and he also added 142 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.
The conversation moving forward will once again center around how the Browns' decision to sign Watson is biting them. The guy simply hasn't lived up to the mega-contract he signed prior to the 2022 season and at this point, no team is going to trade for that contract unless the Browns take on a substantial amount of the guaranteed money. They're stuck unless they just eat a ton of dead money – and when I say a ton of dead money, I'm talking about losing over $136 million if they cut him in 2024. They'll still lose $92 million if they designate him as a post-June 1 cut, too.
What a mess.
