The Cleveland Browns mortgaged their immediate future when they decided to trade for Deshaun Watson. The move was expected to bring Cleveland out of the dark days and, hopefully, to compete for a Super Bowl.
Three years since the trade and that couldn’t have been further from the truth. Watson has dealt with more legal issues, numerous injuries, and poor play throughout his time in Cleveland.
Now, as we head into the 2025 season, Watson is learning of some even more terrible news.
Browns’ Deshaun Watson Learns Of Horrible News Prior To The 2025 Season
Browns owner Jimmy Haslam spoke at the NFL’s annual league meetings about his team’s 3-14 record, and what he thinks is wrong with the franchise:
“We took a big swing-and-miss with Deshaun (Watson),” Haslam told reporters. “We thought we had the quarterback; we didn’t. And we gave up a lot of draft picks to get him, so we’ve got to dig ourselves out of that hole… [The trade] was an entire organization decision and it ends with Dee and I, so hold us accountable.”
And now? ESPN is suggesting ominously that Watson may have “played his last down in the NFL.”
Cleveland traded 2022 first and fourth-round selections, 2023 first and third-round selections, and 2024 first and fourth-round selections to the Houston Texans in order to get Watson.
A few of the players that the Texans drafted with those picks were Will Anderson Jr. and Tank Dell, one of which was Defensive Rookie of the Year, and both of which are vital to the team’s future.
As much as Watson has been involved in drama off the field, he has been inconsistent on it as well. Multiple injuries have limited him to 19 games over three seasons with the Browns. His 9-10 record on the field reflects his inability to win games like he did in Houston. If this really is it for Watson, he has had a massive fall from grace. Here is a look back at how he once faired in the NFL:
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | Sacks | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Sck | SckY | Fum | Lost | ||
| 2017 | HOU | 7 | 6 | 3–3 | 126 | 204 | 61.8 | 1,699 | 8.3 | 72 | 19 | 8 | 103.0 | 36 | 269 | 7.5 | 49 | 2 | 19 | 116 | 3 | 1 |
| 2018 | HOU | 16 | 16 | 11–5 | 345 | 505 | 68.3 | 4,165 | 8.2 | 73 | 26 | 9 | 103.1 | 99 | 551 | 5.6 | 34 | 5 | 62 | 384 | 9 | 3 |
| 2019 | HOU | 15 | 15 | 10–5 | 333 | 495 | 67.3 | 3,852 | 7.8 | 54 | 26 | 12 | 98.0 | 82 | 413 | 5.0 | 30 | 7 | 44 | 257 | 10 | 3 |
| 2020 | HOU | 16 | 16 | 4–12 | 382 | 544 | 70.2 | 4,823 | 8.9 | 77 | 33 | 7 | 112.4 | 90 | 444 | 4.9 | 16 | 3 | 49 | 293 | 8 | 3 |
| 2021 | HOU | 0 | 0 | — | DNP | |||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | CLE | 6 | 6 | 3–3 | 99 | 170 | 58.2 | 1,102 | 6.5 | 46 | 7 | 5 | 79.1 | 36 | 175 | 4.9 | 21 | 1 | 20 | 106 | 1 | 0 |
| 2023 | CLE | 6 | 6 | 5–1 | 105 | 171 | 61.4 | 1,115 | 6.5 | 59 | 7 | 4 | 84.3 | 26 | 142 | 5.5 | 16 | 1 | 17 | 85 | 5 | 2 |
| 2024 | CLE | 7 | 7 | 1–6 | 137 | 216 | 63.4 | 1,148 | 5.3 | 35 | 5 | 3 | 79.0 | 31 | 148 | 4.8 | 16 | 1 | 33 | 191 | 5 | 3 |
| Career | 73 | 72 | 37–35 | 1,527 | 2,305 | 66.2 | 17,904 | 7.8 | 77 | 123 | 48 | 98.8 | 400 | 2,142 | 5.4 | 49 | 20 | 244 | 1,432 | 41 | 15 | |
