BEREA, Ohio — The only certainty about Deshaun Watson’s future with the Browns is that they owe him $92 million over the next two years.
Everything else about the quarterback is up in the air.
At his annual week off news conference, general manager Andrew Berry was mostly noncommittal about Watson on Wednesday, saying he hasn’t ruled out the divisive QB coming back to play for the Browns in 2025 despite another significant injury, three disappointing seasons and a split fan base.
Watson is recovering from a season-ending ruptured Achilles tendon sustained on Oct. 20 in a loss to the Bengals. That, along with Watson being among the lowest-rated quarterbacks in the NFL this season, has led to speculation about how — or if — he fits in with the Browns, who made a franchise-altering trade to acquire him in 2022.
Berry was asked directly if Watson will play for the Browns again.
“That’s always possible,” Berry said, leaving the door open for other options.
With eight games left in a season the Browns (2-7) expected to include the playoffs, Berry said this isn’t the time to look beyond the remaining schedule or dwell on the past but rather focus on the team getting better.
And that holds true for Watson as well.
“Really our focus with Deshaun, I would say for any player with a season-ending injury and a major injury, is first and foremost with the recovery and to make sure that he gets healthy from the Achilles injury,” Berry said. “Everything else we’ll deal with at a later moment.”
While Berry can say that publicly, it’s reasonable to assume the Browns are planning ahead for life with or without Watson, who is in the “very, very early” stages of his rehab, the GM said. There’s not a moment to spare in scouting potential QBs in next year’s draft class or bridging the gap until they find a franchise QB.
That was supposed to be Watson. It hasn’t worked.
The team’s decision to trade three-first round draft picks to the Texans and then sign the 29-year-old Watson by offering him a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract has backfired.
A three-time Pro Bowler, Watson is 9-10 in just 19 starts with the Browns. He was suspended 11 games by the NFL for violating its personal conduct policy in his first season with the Browns and the last two have ended prematurely with injuries — a broken shoulder in 2023, the snapped tendon in 2024.
But even when he has been healthy, Watson hasn’t been very good.
Berry, though, said it’s not fair to blame it all on Watson.
“We haven’t played well as a team and we haven’t played well as a unit on offense,” he said.
Browns owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam were widely criticized for signing Watson because of the money and because it came amid allegations of sexual misconduct while he played for the Texans. He was accused by two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions.