The Cleveland Browns made a callous decision two years ago when they traded for Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. Watson was going to be their franchise quarterback, but it came at a huge cost.
They gave up a lot of draft capital, including three first-round picks, and then gave him a 230 million dollar guarantee.
Baker Mayfield Found Himself In Tampa Bay
The Browns sent their quarterback Baker Mayfield, trading him to the Carolina Panthers. Mayfield joined the Tampa Buccaneers this past season and had a career year.
Mayfield threw for over 4,000 yards and 28 touchdowns and helped Tampa Bay reach the divisional round in the playoffs.
The 28-year-old quarterback was headed to free agency this offseason, but the Buccaneers and Mayfield agreed on a three-year, 100 million-dollar deal on Sunday.
Deshaun Watson Hasn’t Worked For The Cleveland Browns
The Browns have had a fair share of issues with Watson ever since he joined the team in March of 2022, and he hasn’t been worth it. Watson has spent more time off the field in a Browns uniform than actually calling the shots.
Watson suspended the first 11 games of the year in 2022 for sexual assault allegations, and then last season, was banged up with a shoulder injury that only let him play in six games, and backup quarterback Joe Flacco had better success with the team than he ever has had in his 12 starts in Cleveland.
Between his suspension and injury, the ‘franchise’ quarterback has missed a total of 22 games.
It’s bad enough that he’s missed that many games, but the Browns paid Watson $230M in fully guaranteed money, and he carries a $63.977M cap over the next three years. Cleveland can’t even escape the deal until 2027 unless they wanted to pay a cap penalty fee.
In comparison, the quarterback they got rid of has had more success in the last two seasons and will only be owed 100 million dollars in the next three years.
The Browns also gave up a boatload of draft picks, and losing three first-rounders for a guy who has hardly played in two years is not ideal.
Mayfield Is Winning At The Moment
Mayfield is down in Tampa right now, having the time of his life playing in a city with warm weather, and he gets to lay low. He doesn’t have to carry a franchise to the promised land that has never been there before, and he gets to play ball. It does help that he plays in one of the worst divisions in football in the NFL South.
On the other hand, the Browns are in panic mode. If Watson doesn’t play well in year three with the team, it’s over for him at this point. Every Browns fan holds their breath when Watson throws the ball because fans and the media will judge every throw he makes, and as of right now, his critics are winning because he hasn’t done anything in two seasons
Mayfield is winning this divorce at the moment. He gets the warm city, the excellent team, a nice contract, and no pressure, while the Browns play in the arctic cold, have cap space issues, and have a quarterback who has to play well next season. Otherwise, there will be trouble in northeast Ohio after next season.