Browns upcoming QB derby will exclude one prominent veteran

He may be working out with the team, but Deshaun Watson’s time as QB of the Browns is clearly over.

The Cleveland Browns, no strangers to quarterback conundrums, have set themselves up for an extremely interesting summer.

The club is currently flush with options after signing veteran Joe Flacco in free agency, trading for veteran Kenny Pickett, and selecting Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in the 2015 NFL Draft.

Through the remaining days of Organized Team Activities featuring drills with no live contact; the mandatory veteran minicamp in June; training camp in July and August; joint practices with the Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles; and three preseason games; head coach Kevin Stefanski, offensive coordinator Tommy Rees, and quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave will put together a plan to get everyone the reps needed to ensure a proper depth chart will be in place in time for the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals.

What’s that? You’re wondering about Deshaun Watson, who is participating in team activities this week, is out of the walking boot required for his Achilles injury, and has reportedly been firing off passes to wide receivers Jerry Jeudy and David Bell? Where does he fit into the competition?

The reality, as it has been for months now, is that the Browns have reached the end of the line with Watson. Not convinced? Well, the signs have been there for months:

• It was clear last season before his injury, as Watson led one of the worst offensive attacks in NFL history.
• It was reinforced when the Browns traded for Pickett and signed Flacco.
• It was as close to a done deal as possible when team owner Jimmy Haslam admitted that acquiring Watson was a “bit swing-and-miss.”
• Finally, the Browns not only selected two quarterbacks in this year’s NFL Draft but added a second first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft as part of a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars, just in case.

Outside of hanging a banner on team headquarters or posting a large pop-up on the team’s website, there is not much more the club can do to signal that the on-field portion of Watson’s time in Cleveland has come to a close.

Watson will still be a part of the team, of course, because there are still two years left on his fully guaranteed contract. And the Browns have nothing to gain by not allowing Watson to participate at some level in team activities - they are paying him one way or another, so if he wants to work out or toss passes to his teammates, no harm in that.

But there is no plausible scenario where Watson takes another meaningful offensive snap with the Browns. The team is now three years, one league suspension, and two major season-ending injuries into the Watson experience, and it simply has not worked out. They gave it a shot, things fell apart, it happens.

Now it is just down to waiting until the Browns can release...