For those unfamiliar with the story, Deshaun Watson has been accused by 24 different massage therapists of things ranging from harassment to assault. While it’s true that no criminal charges were filed, there is extensive corroborating evidence that support the allegations of these women. I don’t really want to write about the specifics about the lawsuits, but here is a good read from Deadspin about the entire situation. (Caution: it’s a very detailed account of the allegations, and also contains some of the interviews with two accusers.) In my mind, there isn’t a question of whether or not these things happened, there’s just too much smoke for there not to be fire. Yes, I know it’s a slippery slope to assume guilt in this type of situation, but I did a lot of reading from Cleveland writers, Houston writers, and national media and there is a very clear pattern of behavior from Watson. I also think it is meaningful that he tried to settle out of court with these women over a year ago, and only recently is trumpeting his “victim” status. Anyway you slice it, Deshaun clearly has victimized dozens of women and yet seems to have zero remorse for his actions, or even an understanding that what he did was wrong.
The Browns claimed to have done their due diligence, that they interviewed all sorts of people close to Deshaun going all the way back to his days at Clemson. But you know who they didn’t interview? The attorney representing the women is these cases. It seems like that’s one of the first phone calls you would make, even though it would likely be rebuffed because it’s an ongoing situation. I think one of the most disturbing aspects of the signing was the bizarre press conference where Deshaun Watson said he “doesn’t regret a single thing” over the past few years, and that he is eager to get to work on “improving his brand”. He made it very clear that he has no qualms about trampling on people and moving on without an ounce of accountability.
I think it is safe to say that the world of sports was shocked when he was rewarded for his behavior with the largest ever fully guaranteed contract (230 million dollars) nearly a quarter of a BILLION dollars. The NFL has had monster contracts before, but they are often loaded with incentives and options for either party to end the contract. For example, the total value of Patrick Mahomes’ contract could be 502 million dollars, but only 141 million is fully guaranteed. To add to the sleazy nature of the signing, the contract is structured in such a way that Watson’s salary for the upcoming season is just over one million dollars. The Browns are anticipating a suspension, and bent over backwards to soften the penalty for Watson as an enticement to come to Cleveland. For example, if the suspension is 6 games, it will cost him about $350,000. If his salary was on par with other quarterbacks, that 6 game suspension could be as much as 10 million dollars. That fact, along with such a huge amount of guaranteed money, has other NFL owners beside themselves because the Browns just shifted the entire market of the NFL.
Aside from the aforementioned issues, this signing is problematic in many other ways for the Cleveland Browns organization. For example, in 2023 Deshaun Watson, Myles Garrett, and Amari Cooper will count for 107 million dollars toward the salary cap. The Athletic predicts that the 2023 cap will be 225 million, so these three players will account for a little less than half of the money that can be spent on an entire roster. So how in the world can the Browns afford any other decent starters? They will have a little over 100 million dollars to spread amongst 19 other starters, and it is difficult to see how they can structure contracts to get a high level of talent on both sides of the ball.
To me, I think this means the Browns are going all in for the 2022-2023 season and they truly think they can win the Superbowl. They are counting on the fact that winning a title will override 4-5 years of upcoming salary cap hell and very few draft picks. (It cost them 6 picks, including 3 first rounders, to get Watson.) Some aspects of the Cleveland Browns will certainly be better; Watson is a far better QB than Baker, Amari Cooper is a dangerous receiver, and the defense should be very good in the second year under Joe Woods.
However, we’ve seen star receivers disappear when coming to Cleveland, it’s difficult to predict how the offensive line will play, and special teams was a dumpster fire last year. And of course, the likely suspension of Watson means that Jacoby Brissett could start the first 6 games, and quite frankly… he stinks. Not to mention that the AFC North is a tough division with superbowl runner-up Bengals and the perennially good Baltimore Ravens. (Nothing to fear from the Steelers, they’re staring at a 6-11 season.) I’m also anticipating a tremendous amount of attention will surround this team, and I don’t think this team is well-equipped to handle the constant questions about Watson, especially if they get off to a poor start. All of this points to my unequivocal opinion that there is no way possible the Cleveland Browns even get to the Superbowl. A much more likely result would be a 10-7 season and that’s really only likely if they get lucky and avoid injuries. So this team will have sold their soul for Deshaun Watson, only to end up a few games better than last season and still without a Superbowl trophy.
While I won’t be supporting the Cleveland Browns this season, I will keep tabs on them, mostly in a “I told you so” sort of way. And I’ll be counting down the days until Watson goes somewhere else. If management and ownership ever seem to be committed to doing things the right way, I’ll gladly dust off my Browns gear and return to being a fan. Maybe I’ll fill the Sunday evening gap with some other sport; cricket, rugby, or extreme pogo sticking. Continue to visit this space for my rambling thoughts on the world of sports.
* I’m not the only one taking a break from the Browns, Cleveland Royalty Jim and Andrea Thome canceled their season tickets. I wish we could access the critical emails, voicemails, faxes, letters, and telegrams that the Browns received in the wake of this signing. I’m sure there are hundreds, if not thousands, of people who feel the same as I do.
