NFL Trade Rumors
Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot says that while Browns QB Deshaun Watson is eligible to have his three-week window to return opened, it’s more likely the team waits until the offseason to bring Watson back to football activities.
Cabot adds that it seems like a foregone conclusion Watson will be on the team in 2026, as the dead cap money to move on from him would be significant even if he were designated a June 1 cut.
Cabot expects the Browns to restructure Watson’s $46 million guaranteed salary again for the final year of the five-year, $230 million contract he signed after Cleveland traded for him in 2022.
The Browns could designate Watson as a June 1 cut after that, splitting the remaining $131 million in dead money over two years with $45 million in 2026, $86 million in 2027. However, Cabot doesn’t think that’s economically feasible.
If Watson’s on the roster, that means he has a chance to factor into the equation at quarterback for the Browns in 2026, who will be evaluating third-round QB Dillon Gabriel and — eventually — fifth-round QB Shedeur Sanders for the rest of this season.
Watson, 30, was taken in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft out of Clemson by the Texans. He signed a four-year, $13.854 million rookie deal with the Texans that included a fifth-year option of around $17.3 million for the 2021 season.
The Texans later signed Watson to a four-year extension worth as much as $177 million heading into the 2020 season, paying him $39 million a year. However, Watson requested a trade after the season, then sat out the entire 2021 season while navigating more than two dozen lawsuits for sexual misconduct. He was later suspended for 11 games.
Watson was traded to the Browns for significant draft compensation in 2022 and signed a five-year, $230 million, fully guaranteed contract as part of the trade. The deal runs through 2026 and includes base salaries of $46 million in each of the final two seasons.
In 2024, Watson appeared in seven games for the Browns and completed 63.4 percent of his pass attempts for 1,148 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions. He added 31 carries for 148 yards and another score.
We’ll have more on Watson as the news is available.
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