It was much more than just another victory for the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. After getting blown out in Week 1, they responded by defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a high-profile revenge game against former quarterback Baker Mayfield.
Not only that, their current quarterback, Deshaun Watson, played better than he had in years. His performance inspires confidence that head coach Todd Monken may have been right about him all along, setting a very different tone for the season going forward.
The 23-19 upset was an even more surprising outcome when you consider that the Browns also put an end to an infamous streak with Watson at QB, scoring more than 20 points for the first time in almost three years.
“The Browns had scored fewer than 20 points in eight straight Watson starts entering Sunday’s matchup. This was Cleveland’s first time cracking 20-plus points in a Watson start since Week 10 of the 2023 season, a 33-31 win over the Ravens,” ESPN’s NFL Nation wrote.
That covers an extensive amount of time, going back to that victory against the Ravens on Nov. 12, 2023. At that point, it was the second game in a row that Watson started in which the Browns had scored at least 27 points.
After a delayed beginning to his Browns tenure in the 2022 season because of a lengthy NFL suspension, things were starting to turn around for Watson in 2023. But that game against Baltimore was his final one as he was sidelined by a shoulder injury.
The following year, Cleveland lost six of the first seven games with Watson as the starter, with a high of 18 points, before he was lost for the season with an Achilles injury. The win on Sunday was the Browns’ first with Watson on the field since Sept. 15, 2024.
He certainly earned it, leading a second-half comeback by completing 17 of 21 passes for 183 yards and two touchdowns in the final two quarters. A 55-yard catch-and-run TD by Denzel Boston tied the game at 16-16, his 17-yard pass to Blake Whiteheart gave the Browns the lead with less than four minutes to go, and the defense protected it against Mayfield from there.
Now, Watson will try to build a two-game winning streak in the home opener against the Carolina Panthers, something that didn’t seem likely just one day ago.
NEXT: Mike Tomlin Responds To Todd Monken's Jab At Him
