Dawgs By Nature
Having multiple quarterbacks seems like a ritual
Last year, the Cleveland Browns went through a bunch of quarterbacks. The franchise used a total of five starting quarterbacks over the course of the 2023 season due to injuries.
Last year, starter Deshaun Watson led an upset win over the division leader Baltimore Ravens but in the process suffered a shoulder injury that ended up being season-ending. Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson (DTR) had a hip injury. Journeyman P.J. Walker started two games and played in three. Veteran Joe Flacco was signed and helped lead the Browns to the playoffs in his five games. Finally, Jeff Driskel started in the final regular-season game against the Cincinnati Bengals in a meaningless contest.
Going into this season, the issue of having capable backups at the most important position on the football field was supposedly one of the team’s main goals. The team signed veterans Jameis Winston and Tyler Huntley to compete with DTR. The Browns looked for consistency at quarterback as a healthy Watson was all set to lead this year’s offensive attack.
That all ended on Sunday in the home loss to the Bengals.
With less than two minutes remaining in the first half, Watson made an awkward stumble after being flushed from the pocket, then suffered what appeared to be an Achilles injury and was subsequently carted off the field. The injury and Watson’s status for the season has since been confirmed.
In came DTR and later Winston played. Why was the less experienced QB used?
The Browns had made Winston inactive and listed him as the emergency third quarterback, so there was no other choice but for Thompson-Robinson to replace Watson. When DTR injured a finger in the fourth quarter, Winston was then able to enter the game.
The reports later state that DTR’s finger issue is not that serious.
Watson, age 29, has a long history of serious leg injuries while at the University of Clemson and during his stint in the NFL. In college, he played through a torn ACL in his left knee. As a rookie with the Houston Texans, he missed the last nine games after he tore the ACL in his right knee. With the Browns, he has had several issues including shoulder and ankle problems.
Just in his third season in Cleveland, Watson has not shown why he was a first-round draft pick or the player who led the league in passing yards in 2020 passing for 4,823 yards with 33 TD passes against just seven interceptions. Watson has struggled this season, posting the lowest QB rating of all qualified passers and his rushing yardage has diminished mightily.
This scenario is exactly the same episode the Browns faced last season. Watson had gone down with a shoulder injury, Walker and DTR struggled on the field, and suddenly Cleveland GM Andrew Berry was looking at the free agent QB list to see which one he could sign.
A lot of folks wanted Matt...
