The Cleveland Browns saw their improbable streak cut short on Saturday, falling to the Houston Texans by a final score of 45-14. The game was still within reach early in the third quarter, but Cleveland quarterback Joe Flacco threw a pick-6 on consecutive possessions that put Houston ahead for good, sending the Browns packing for the year.
Watson will be the Browns’ starting quarterback
Kevin Stefanski says Deshaun Watson will be Cleveland’s starting quarterback heading into the offseason. Stefanski says Watson should be ready to recover from his right shoulder surgery sometime this spring. #browns
– Jake Trotter (@Jake_Trotter) January 14, 2024
While it was Flacco’s magic that helped fuel their late-season surge, the team will once again have its $230 million man.
In one of his exit interviews on Sunday, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said Deshaun Watson will be Cleveland’s starting quarterback during the offseason, and said the injured quarterback should be fully healed. and ready to play sometime in the spring.
The Watson experiment has so far been a failure for the Browns. They took a leap in March 2022 when they signed the polarizing quarterback who was dealing with off-field issues and gave him $230 million guaranteed, the most guaranteed money given to any player in NFL history.
Struggles for Watson during first two seasons in Cleveland
The Browns finished the season allowing just 13.9 points per game at home, compared to 31.3 points per game on the road. That differential (17.4) is the largest of any team since the 1982 Bills, according to @ESPNStatsInfo. Cleveland was 8-1 at home and 3-6 on the road this year.
– Jake Trotter (@Jake_Trotter) January 14, 2024
After serving an 11-game suspension to begin his stay in Cleveland, Watson was shaky upon returning. He had a completion percentage under 60 and threw for 184 yards per game, finishing with 7 touchdowns and 5 interceptions as the Browns went 3-3.
The team, coaching staff and fans hoped it was the rust he was shaking off and he needed some time to adjust to his new team. And while things improved statistically for Watson in 2023, it was only slightly. The Browns were winning, as the team went 5-1 in games starting last season, but it was largely thanks to their defense. The quarterback improved his completion percentage, but still threw only 7 touchdowns against 4 interceptions.
The Browns went through a quarterback carousel during the second half of the season when Watson suffered an injury, which ended with Flacco leading the team to the postseason. The 38-year-old went 4-1 in his five starts with Cleveland, throwing for more than 300 yards in each of the last four.
The Browns finished with 11 wins for the first time since 2020 and only the second since 1994.
