Cries among fans and analysts for Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski to bench struggling quarterback Deshaun Watson in favor of backup Jameis Winston grew louder after Cleveland fell to 1-5 on the season via Sunday’s 20-16 loss at the Philadelphia Eagles (3-2).
Before that game took place, former Browns general manager and current NFL analyst Michael Lombardi discussed why, in his words, Watson looks “horrible” during what’s quickly becoming a lost campaign for everybody involved.
“He’s rich and is guaranteed rich,” Lombardi said about Watson while speaking with TMZ Sports. “…Sometimes he goes to the sideline, he’s got that towel over his head, he’s checking his Bank of America account to make sure he’s still filthy rich. He’s lost his motivation. He’s lost his drive. He’s lost almost his pride to be great. I don’t feel it. I don’t feel the passion in him. He’s guaranteed for the next two years.”
Watson earned Pro Bowl nods each season from 2018-2020 while with the Houston Texans, but he then sat out the entire 2021 campaign following a trade request. The Browns initially weren’t among his desired landing spots, but that changed after Cleveland gave him a fully guaranteed five-year, $230M contract to relocate to Northeast Ohio in March 2022.
Since Watson put pen to paper on that deal, he’s gone 9-9 across 18 total regular-season starts. More worrisome as it pertains to the Browns, he played like arguably the NFL’s worst starting signal-caller over the ongoing campaign’s opening six weeks.
ESPN stats show that Watson began Monday ranked last in the league among qualified players with a 21.5 adjusted QBR on the season. Against the Eagles, he completed 16-of-23 passes for 168 yards with zero touchdown drives. Cleveland became the first team in 10 years to score under 20 points in each of its first six games of a season.
On Oct. 6, former Dallas Cowboys head coach and current NBC personality Jason Garrett warned Stefanski that the coach could face a locker-room mutiny if he continued playing Watson. Stefanski said on Sunday he’s sticking with Watson for this coming Sunday’s home game against the 2-4 Cincinnati Bengals.
“Stefanski,” Lombardi added about possibly benching Watson, “this isn’t about getting away from the contract. This is about saving your franchise. The players know it.”
There’s currently no sign the Browns can realistically escape Watson’s contract before March 2026 at the earliest. Some are convinced Stefanski is essentially being forced to play the 29-year-old by general manager Andrew Berry and/or team owner Jimmy Haslam because of the guaranteed money attached to Watson’s deal.
For better or for worse, Browns fans are going to have to hope Watson turns things around beginning with the matchup against Cincinnati. He’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
As of Monday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Cleveland as a 4.5-point underdog against Cincinnati.