DeShaun Watson (QB Cleveland Browns)

[colobuck79]

 

[AuTX Buckeye]

I wish it was the punked crew and not Haslem & Berry

 

[ScriptOhio]

Browns name Deshaun Watson starting QB ... yet have 200 million reasons to cut him after the 2026 season

Cleveland is turning to Watson now even though his contract makes it almost impossible for him to remain with the team beyond this year

www.cbssports.com

Browns name Deshaun Watson starting QB ... yet have 200 million reasons to cut him after the 2026 season​

Cleveland is turning to Watson now even though his contract makes it almost impossible for him to remain with the team beyond this year​

The Cleveland Browns officially have a starting quarterback in Deshaun Watson, and for some reason, they decided to give the job to a player who likely doesn't have a future with the team.

Due to the way Watson's contract is structured, the Browns will almost certainly release him in March, and that just adds another bizarre layer to the team's decision to hand him the starting QB job. The Browns could have given the job to Shedeur Sanders, but instead, they gave it to someone who essentially has no future in Cleveland.

The $200 million reason why Deshaun Watson will be gone after the 2026 season​

After the Browns traded for Watson in 2022, they gave him a five-year, $230 million contract that was fully guaranteed. Not only did the Browns make one of the worst trades in NFL history, but they followed it up by handing out one of the worst contracts ever. That's the kind of double whammy that can set your team back for the better part of a decade.

Over the past four years, the Browns have restructured Watson's contract multiple times, mainly so Cleveland could kick the can down the road on his salary cap hits. However, the Browns also included a poison pill when they restructured his contract in December 2024, and the clause pretty much guarantees they will cut Watson by March 13, 2027, so be sure to mark your calendar, Browns fans.

Here's how the clause works, via former NFL agent Joel Corry, who laid out the details in February:

• During the restructure, Watson had two dummy/voiding years in 2027 and 2028 that were turned into real contract years with minimum salaries. Watson also has a base salary of $200 million in 2029 that's NOT guaranteed, but it becomes FULLY guaranteed if he's still on the roster by the third day of the league year in 2027. If the Browns don't want to pay the $200 million, they have to cut Watson before March 13, 2027. (This is a team that once had a trade fall through because they forgot to file the paperwork with the NFL, so hopefully someone sets an alarm for March 12 so they remember to cut Watson.)

By the time next March rolls around, the Browns will have paid Watson $230 million, and you can go ahead and bet everything you own that they're going to make sure they don't have to pay him another dollar.

If Watson were to somehow lead the Browns to the Super Bowl this year, the team would still be forced to cut him because there's no way they'd be able to afford to keep him with the $200 million salary becoming guaranteed in 2029.
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[billmac91]

I swear they have a plan to get this guy hurt or something, and then have some type of insurance cover the contract.

It’s the only thing that makes any sense….

 

[brodybuck21]

 

[AKAK]

I swear they have a plan to get this guy hurt or something, and then have some type of insurance cover the contract.

It’s the only thing that makes any sense….

I figure its either that, or somehow he looks great, and some other starter breaks his dick and they can trade him for a 6th round pick and a few million on the cap hit.