The Cleveland Browns and Deshaun Watson seemed headed for a split at the end of last season.
Since his arrival, the quarterback has failed to meet expectations, and owner Jimmy Haslam shocked many by openly admitting the trade was a ‘big swing and miss.”
With that in mind, former Browns star Josh Cribbs defended the owner for being honest.
“That’s a bold statement. You’ve got to be bold to go out here and try to win a Super Bowl. He said it in public view, plain language: ‘It was a swing and a miss.’ I felt for Deshaun, I know, but he was going to try and swing again. That’s all you can do,” Cribbs said, via “The Top Dawgs Show.”
"You gotta be BOLD to go out here and try to win a Super Bowl."@JoshCribbs16 DEFENDS Jimmy Haslam's move for Deshaun Watson. Do you agree with Josh? #DawgPound
Presented by @Preston_Cars https://t.co/WYndpJmFBi pic.twitter.com/038k8rkSEj
— The Top Dawgs Show (@TopDawgShow) August 19, 2025
Watson isn’t in a strong position to rebut Haslam’s statement.
The Browns gave him a fully guaranteed contract when he was facing serious off-field accusations.
Then, when he was eligible to play, he looked like a shell of his former self.
He also suffered multiple injuries and was never the type of MVP-caliber player the Browns thought they had traded for.
The owner could’ve also stayed quiet instead of stirring the pot.
But at the end of the day, his candid admission was accurate. It was a swing and a miss, one of the biggest in NFL history.
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