The Cleveland Browns expected to land a franchise quarterback when they traded a package that included three first-round picks to the Houston Texans in 2022.
Watson struggled to regain his form last season after beginning the season serving an 11-game suspension for gross sexual misconduct; allegations that he largely settled out of court.
Throughout the offseason, Watson said this season would look different now that he would be the starter from Week 1. That simply wasn’t the case in the first two games of the season that the Browns split to go 1-1.
On Sunday, facing the Tennessee Titans, the Browns faced a first down near midfield. Titans defensive linemen were in the backfield almost instantly, and to avoid a sack, Watson baffling tossed an off-target backward pass to wide receiver Elijah Moore.
Deshaun Watson… um… pic.twitter.com/Gsa2BKab47
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) September 24, 2023
Though Moore wasn’t expecting the pass, he was able to recover the fumble. Perhaps most surprisingly, the Browns would go on to score a touchdown on the drive despite the insane mistake from Watson.
The NFL world was quick to react to the baffling decision:
when your controller dies https://t.co/hW8N7q3aGf
— Travonne Edwards (@Travonne) September 24, 2023
Drunkest play I’ve ever seen https://t.co/qfvQ9LIP1G
— Sloot (@ChadHaynez) September 24, 2023
https://twitter.com/harveymcclain/status/1706003122215158207
I’ve only seen this on madden glitches 😂 https://t.co/SkkkIDSWPk
— Myles (@MylesRinSF) September 24, 2023
Let the record show Watson is still having a better game than Ryan Tannehill and it’s not particularly close https://t.co/Iz5YFOYsPp
— Aaron (@urnjones) September 24, 2023
Despite the terrible play, Watson is putting together his best performance against the dubious Titans pass defense. At halftime, Watson had completed 16 of his 20 pass attempts for 146 yards and a touchdown.
