This week’s game will undoubtedly have a bit more importance to Deshaun Watson. Not only will the Cleveland Browns quarterback be taking on his former team, the Houston Texans, but he will be back on the field after a one-game absence that could have put his starting job in jeopardy.
Not only that, but the Browns and Texans are likely to be competing for one of the final AFC playoff berths over the second half of the season. So there is a lot at stake in the Week 10 matchup.
That is why former Browns player T.J. Ward is issuing a reality check for Watson, saying his “career is on the line” this Sunday.
“Deshaun Watson needs this game more than C.J. Stroud does. This is his career on the line. With every loss he takes, he’s sitting further and further away from not only starting for the Browns, but ever starting in the NFL again. He needs to win this game, and he needs to continue to win and play well. C.J. Stroud, he’s gonna start next year. He’s gonna start the year after that. He’s a good quarterback in this league. Individually, Deshaun Watson needs to win, especially against his former team to show the rest of the league and the Browns that, ‘Yes, I can still start in this league. I can get a win, and put distance from Shedeur Sanders breathing down the back of my neck,’” Ward said.
"Deshaun Watson needs this game more than CJ Stroud does. This is his career on the line." – @BossWard43 pic.twitter.com/gZ8Z49PlSs
— Speakeasy (@speakeasytlkshw) November 12, 2026
That may be an exaggeration, as Watson has already proven he is a viable starter in the NFL by leading five game-winning drives so far this season. But none of those games have been easy, which is why there was talk of Sanders maybe being given another start after filling in for Watson last week in a 23-22 overtime loss to the New Orleans Saints.
Watson was available for that game but was inactive after being unable to practice for most of the week while in concussion protocol. Cleveland head coach Todd Monken took an extra day to announce Watson as the starter for this week but did not seem to seriously consider replacing him with Sanders at this time.
With eight starts so far, Watson has already played more games than he has in any of his five seasons with Cleveland. He has completed 65.5 percent of his passes for 1,806 yards and seven touchdowns, and he has rushed for 217 yards and one touchdown on 51 carries. Even though his QBR is one of the worst in the league, he has been able to put the Browns in the playoff race.
Interestingly, Watson’s first game as the Browns’ starting QB was against the Texans in December 2022, after he served an 11-game suspension related to sexual assault allegations against him, so things are very different now heading into this meeting.
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