Sunday's matchup with the Giants profiled as a game that could allow the Browns to gain momentum after picking up their first win of the season a week ago. It was anything but that.
An early 7-0 Cleveland lead rapidly turned into a 21-7 deficit before halftime, and multiple chances for the Browns to march down and the field and pull back in front on the fourth quarter were unsuccessful.
Watson had a pair of touchdown passes in the loss, but mistakes cost the Browns when it mattered most. He fumbled away a massive opportunity in Giants territory in the fourth quarter, and Cleveland's next drive went nowhere after Watson was stopped on fourth-and-1.
Given one last opportunity to drive down the field, Watson went 1-of-4 passing and couldn't pick up a first down.
Here's what you need to know about Watson's status as the Browns' starter.
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Will Deshaun Watson be benched?
The Browns are in a tough spot with Watson because of his contract, which is virtually untradeable at this point and makes it impossible for the team to cut him outright without swallowing a massive amount of money.
That doesn't mean Watson can't be benched, though.
Cleveland invested in its backup role by adding Jameis Winston and Tyler Huntley this offseason. While Huntley was released after Dorian Thompson-Robinson's strong preseason, Winston earned the No. 2 job and has enough experience to give the Browns a realistic starting option if Watson isn't getting the job done.
To this point, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski hasn't indicated he's considering a quarterback change. He said after Cleveland's Week 1 loss to the Cowboys that Watson was hit "way too often," indicating he didn't put the team's offensive struggles all on his quarterback. Watson was sacked a whopping eight times against the Giants on Sunday, which could help Stefanski again explain away the late-game failures.
Stefanski praised Watson after the Browns' Week 2 win over the Jaguars despite a tepid offensive performance. "A couple of those throws down the field were really, really impressive, and he never blinked," Stefanski said.
At some point, however, winning is what matters most. The Browns got the win in Week 2, but a home loss to the underdog Giants won't sit well with the fan base, if chants of "We want Jameis" are any indication.
“We want Jameis” chants bellowing at Huntington Bank Field. #DawgPound
— Nick Pedone (@NickPedone12) September 22, 2024
The presence of Winston, who has 80 career starts and 141 touchdown passes under his belt, could make Stefanski's comments leading up to Week 4 especially interesting.
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Deshaun Watson stats 2024
| Starts | Record | Comp. rate | Yards | TD | INT | Passer rating |
| 3 | 1-2 | 57.8% | 551 | 3 | 2 | 73.1 |
Watson posted his best passer rating of the season Sunday thanks to a pair of touchdown passes, but he took eight sacks struggled to get anything going late in the fourth quarter,
Through three games, the former Clemson QB is completing less than 58 percent of passes and has yet to record a 200-yard passing performance.
