Browns still believe Deshaun Watson gives them ‘best chance to win’

Team held a players-only meeting this week to talk about the ongoing issues, but players still believe in their quarterback, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.

The Cleveland Browns have had numerous issues on offense that collectively help to explain why they enter Sunday’s game with a 1-3 record.

Injuries have continued to hit the offensive line, as:

• Starting right tackle Jack Conklin looked to be ready for Week 3 after missing the first two games only to suffer a hamstring injury that has kept him sidelined;
• Starting left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. made his return from injury in Week 3 only to suffer another leg injury after playing just 40 offensive snaps;
• Starting right guard Wyatt Teller is currently on the injured reserve list with a knee injury; and,
• Right tackle Dawand Jones continues to deal with a knee injury that has clearly impacted his play.

Those injuries have impacted the ground game as the Browns have only two rushing touchdowns and just two runs of more than 20 yards while hoping that Nick Chubb can breathe some life into the attack at some point this season.

The receivers have had their issues with drops, an inability to create separation, and an ankle injury that has sidelined tight end David Njoku since Week 1.

Then there is the play of quarterback Deshaun Watson, who has yet to hit 200 passing yards in a game, has taken 19 sacks, and has just four touchdown passes.

Add it all up, and it is no wonder that the Browns are the only team not to hit 300 yards of offense in a single game, have scored just 58 points on offense, are last in the NFL with a third-down conversation rate of 20.8 percent, and can’t seem to maintain any kind of momentum after the opening drive of a game.

The weird thing is, despite all those woes the Browns had a chance to win the games against the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders if they could have just put together one solid drive in the fourth quarter of each game.

It is not one player’s fault, although much of the fan angst is directed at Watson, who has not come close to being the player the Browns expected when they acquired him in a trade with the Houston Texans.

Despite what the outside voices may think - and numerous voices have made their opinions known about the quarterback situation - the belief among the players is that Watson gives the Browns the best chance to win.

That is according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, who wrote that the Browns held a players-only meeting earlier this week.

The lasting memory of last week’s loss to the Raiders may be Watson being sacked on a fourth-and-goal play with receivers open that ended the game. But Cleveland needed a touchdown rather than a field goal because kicker Dustin Hopkins had missed an extra point earlier in the half...