No One Is Asking This Question When It Comes To Deshaun Watson
Maybe it’s because I am a Steelers fan. Maybe in my old age, I am turning into a get off my lawn type of person. Very much glass half empty at times. Life has taught me that the other shoe always drops at some point, you just have to wait for it. Since the news broke of the Houston Texans trading Deshaun Watson to the Cleveland Browns, talk has been that Cleveland finally has their guy. Their quarterback of the future who can finally lead them on a deep playoff run. But we are avoiding a certain question that needs to be mentioned because I have not seen a single person bring this up since the trade happened.
What if he doesn’t work?
Let me explain.
I get the hype. Honestly, I do. 26-year-old quarterback from Clemson who his old college coach Dabo Sweeney said reminded him of Michael Jordan. That’s high praise. During his tenure in the NFL, Watson had back-to-back 10+ win seasons with a bum roster and Bill O’Brien as his head coach. He can turn chicken shit into chicken salad. That’s evident. The way Deshaun Watson moves around the pocket makes him as duel threat as duel threat gets. Not to mention the 67.8% completion percentage in his career, which as of right now is the highest career completion percentage of all time. Higher than Drew Brees. This guy has it all.
But there’s a lot going on off the field that scares me. Yes, he had his criminal charges dropped. Yes, that second grand jury didn’t file charges. 22 cases of this don’t just come out of nowhere, though. Plus, how can we be sure he is game ready? Did you see a single video while he wasn’t playing last year of him throwing passes? Running around a field at all? I get it. Garrett, not everyone has to show what they’re doing to be doing something. That’s entirely fair. But don’t get it twisted, quarterbacks LOVE the attention. Look at Russell Wilson in Denver. The hospital visit. The hype videos of him throwing passes to his receivers out in California.
It would be different if a guy was coming off a season-ending injury, and that’s why he didn’t play at all the season before. They would be showing their fans they are in the lab, grinding to be game ready. Silence from the Deshaun Watson camp.
What if he doesn’t work? Cleveland traded away the farm to get him. Not only would they not have ANY quality picks to try and land their QB of the future, but the cap hit for Watson will be massive. 5 years, $230M ties these two together long term. That’s an awfully large commitment to make to someone who we haven’t seen throw a football since January 2021. We don’t see a single thing from him for over a year, and I am expected to entrust my entire franchise to the guy? I have concerns.
It just makes you wonder why teams passed on Deshaun Watson. Miami was out. The Giants told reporters they didn’t want him. If I am wrong, I’m wrong. Maybe Watson can lead Cleveland to a deep playoff run this year and for years to come. I will happily eat my crow and say you were right. But no one is asking the important question: what if Deshaun Watson doesn’t work?
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