Michael Irvin Turns Heads With Claim About Browns

Even though the Cleveland Browns are coming off an impressive comeback victory on the road in Week 2, the reception they are about to receive in their Week 3 home opener remains somewhat in doubt. Deshaun Watson had his best performance in almost three years, engineering an upset of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but that still might not be enough to get the Browns’ fan base on his side.

Watson played much, much better than he did in the embarrassing season-opening loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Another outing like that could have ended his time as Cleveland’s starter, with fans already clamoring for Shedeur Sanders to take over.

Now, with Watson in line to start against the Carolina Panthers, former NFL wide receiver Michael Irvin is turning heads with his recent statement about the Browns, saying they were hoping to lose to the Buccaneers so they could be done with Watson once and for all.

“This was the last thing the Cleveland Browns wanted. They didn’t want him to win this game. They wanted to end this thing right there,” Irvin said.

"This was the last thing the Cleveland Browns wanted."

—@michaelirvin88 on Deshaun Watson's win in Tampa Bay 👀 pic.twitter.com/vigemori4g

— First Take (@FirstTake) September 21, 2026

This, of course, is a ridiculous hot take. If Cleveland really wanted to lose the game, it could have let Tampa Bay score on its final drive, rather than keeping them out of the end zone coming out of a two-hour weather delay. Then, based on the postgame reaction from head coach Todd Monken, it was clear that the Browns were very motivated to emerge with a victory.

Irvin does have a point questioning whether this is enough to get the fans to support Watson. They have wanted to move on from him for a long time, and he did nothing to help his cause when he got on their case after they booed him during a preseason game.

“They’re going to boo him straight off the bat. I don’t care that you won one game. That ain’t gonna change anything in Cleveland,” Irvin said.

The potential reaction is so much of an unknown that analyst Anthony Lima has already warned fans not to be too negative at Huntington Bank Stadium this Sunday. Watson also needs to guard against antagonizing the fans any further leading up to the game, and he must play well to avoid any pent-up backlash.

But at this point, with a short week coming up afterward against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, Watson has likely bought himself more than just another start, no matter how he plays against Carolina.