There is a tangible price attached to the Cleveland Browns’ relationship with Deshaun Watson, namely the $230 million fully guaranteed contract they gave him after sending six draft picks, including three first-rounders, to the Houston Texans to acquire him in a trade. There are also ongoing salary cap implications thanks to multiple restructurings of that deal.
But there are many more intangible impacts. The public relations nightmare surrounding the multiple sexual assault allegations attached to Watson lingers to this day, with the quarterback seemingly oblivious to that fact.
Then there is the personal cost of people who left the organization because of Watson’s presence. That, as much as anything else, has set the franchise back, yet it still does not show a real desire to move on from him instead.
With Watson coming off an embarrassing 34-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, insider Jason Lloyd revealed the massive cost of the decisions the Browns made regarding Watson since his arrival in March 2022.
“How many more people have to pay the bill for Deshaun? You ran [Joe] Flacco out of here. You got rid of Alex Van Pelt to appease Deshaun. Team that went to the playoffs, fired the offensive coordinator, that cost you Bill Callahan. You brought in Ken Dorsey. That was a disaster. He was gone. Then you fire the head coach. At what point do all these people stop paying the bill for the worst mistake in the history of the franchise? I can’t believe that we are back in this spot of having to justify playing Deshaun Watson. He was horrendous yesterday. Horrendous,” Lloyd said.
“HOW MANY MORE PEOPLE HAVE TO PAY THE BILL FOR DESHAUN?” 😳🏈@ByJasonLloyd sounds off after #Browns QB Deshaun Watson’s latest performance against the #Jaguars.
▶️https://t.co/MbmH4PUyjn pic.twitter.com/ROPNb57OUq
— Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show (@ultCLEsports) September 14, 2026
After Flacco joined the Browns late in the 2023 season and helped them to a surprising playoff berth, Lloyd said that Watson did not want him around the following year because the backup would have been more popular than him. Watson then wound up playing just seven games, with one Browns victory, before he was sidelined with an Achilles injury.
Lloyd also suggests that Watson wanted Van Pelt out as offensive coordinator, even though he helped the Browns reach the playoffs with Flacco as the fifth QB they used that season. Seeing that, heralded offensive line coach Bill Callahan opted to leave and join his son with the Tennessee Titans.
Dorsey took over as offensive coordinator and was gone after one season. The next offseason, Kevin Stefanski was fired as head coach. Now, Stefanski’s replacement, Todd Monken, has steadfastly aligned himself with Watson, naming him as the starting QB for this season over fan favorite Shedeur Sanders.
If Watson’s Week 1 performance is an indication of what’s to come, Monken may be the next coach out the door.
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