Brown Down: Watson Out for Season

11/16/2023

By: Jeff Yoder

Browns Dealt Another Blow, QB Deshaun Watson to Undergo Season-Ending Shoulder Surgery

The Browns are a really great football team, but the curse continues in Cleveland. Despite being 6-3 and boasting one of the best defenses in the league, the Browns announced Wednesday that QB Deshaun Watson would undergo season-ending surgery to repair a fracture in his throwing shoulder. Watson reportedly suffered the injury in the first half of Sunday’s game against the Ravens before miraculously engineering a second-half comeback. He’s the second star of the Browns’ backfield to go down for the season after RB Nick Chubb suffered a torn ACL in Week 2.

Oddsmakers Oust the Browns

Cleveland’s Super Bowl odds dropped from 22/1 to 55/1 on Wednesday after the Watson injury news. Their chances to win the AFC title also fell from 11/1 to 25/1, making it the second-greatest injury-sparked odds shift of the 2023 season behind only Jets QB Aaron Rodgers.

The Worst Contract in Sports?

The 28-year-old Watson was given a five-year, fully guaranteed $230 million contract by Cleveland after they acquired him from the Texans in 2022. They also gave up three 1st-round picks in that deal. Watson served an eight-game suspension last season for his previous off-the-field issues while in Houston, and he’s already missed three games this season. So far, he’s been paid $92 million over the past two years for just 12 games played where he produced 2,217 yards, 14 TDs, 9 INTs and a 59.8% completion rate. Not great. But the Browns were 8-4 in games started by Watson.

AFC North Standings

Ravens (7-3)

Browns (6-3)

Steelers (6-3)

Bengals (5-4)

Ironically, Josh Dobbs (today’s underdog) was on the Browns roster at the beginning of the season before being traded to Arizona. The Browns will now turn to Dorian Thompson-Robinson to lead a 6-3 team in the loaded AFC North.

Video: Deshaun Watson ‘In Disbelief’ After Hearing Season-Ending Surgery Diagnosis

USA Today: Deshaun Watson Injury Leaves Browns Dead in the Water — Through Fault of Their Own

Photo: Diamond Images / Getty Images