Everyone wants to sugarcoat it, but nobody wants to call it as it is. Why are the Cleveland Browns’ front office and coaching staff hesitant to criticize Deshaun Watson? Professional athletes are often scrutinized when they fail to meet expectations, and Watson has certainly earned his share of criticism. Shouldn’t the front office and head coach Kevin Stefanski hold him accountable?
Watson isn’t a delicate player who walked into an impossible situation. He is an underperforming NFL quarterback, and the Browns appear increasingly ignorant for committing $45 million to him over the next two-and-a-half seasons. When a player puts up consistently poor numbers like Watson has, they deserve to be called out, not treated as if they’re untouchable.
The Cleveland Browns need to find a solution to their difficult situation. It’s unclear how the Browns can improve from here, and there’s little confidence that they know either. Cleveland is in a tough spot. They can’t be overly critical of Watson and are stuck paying him despite his poor performance on the field.
“My understanding is it’s not real easy to be super critical of Deshaun in the building,” The Athletic’s Mike Sando said on The Athletic’s podcast “Scoop City”. “I would love to know just how honest everyone is internally in their evaluations.”
For the Browns to move forward, they first need to admit they were wrong. The organization is doing everything to avoid saying that. They need to stop treating Watson like he’s untouchable just because they’re tied to his hefty contract.
The Browns feel compelled to play Watson because of the enormous salary they are paying him. Benching Watson and still losing would only highlight the franchise’s inadequacies. This might explain why they let Joe Flacco go; having Flacco as a backup would put someone’s job at risk if Watson continued to underperform.
Claiming Watson is “our best chance to win” doesn’t instill confidence in fans. Statistically the worst quarterback this season by a long shot, Watson offers little hope for victory.
It’s a delicate issue. However, the Browns will never be able to move past the disastrous Deshaun Watson era in Cleveland if they can’t first admit their mistake. Only then can the quarterback troubles that have plagued this franchise for decades finally fade away.
