The white flag in Cleveland has finally been raised.
Browns owner Jimmy Haslam has admitted the organization’s mistake in trading for Deshaun Watson and giving him the unprecedented five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract.
At the NFL‘s Annual League Meeting, Haslam was candid about Watson’s time in Northeast, Ohio.
“We took a big swing and miss with Deshaun,” Haslam said, via Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.
“We thought we had the quarterback, we didn’t and we gave up a lot of draft picks to get him. So we’ve got to dig ourselves out of that hole.
“[The trade] was an entire organization decision and it ends with Dee and I, so hold us accountable.”
The trade saw Cleveland give up three-first round picks, a third-round pick and two fourth-round picks to the Houston Texans for Watson back in March of 2022.
Since then, Watson appeared in a grand total of 19 games, out of a possible 52 over the last three seasons.
Injuries plagued Watson during his time in Cleveland, which by the way, is still not over.
Watson will be on Cleveland’s roster this season, as he rehabs from a torn Achilles, as the Browns will try their best to find a way from having Watson on the roster for 2026.
In fact, they have already started laying the groundwork for a potential out.
Earlier this month, Cleveland’s front office restructured Watson’s contract to create $35.75 million of cap space.
They did so by converting $44.7 million of his 2025 salary into a signing bonus.
The move helped make Cleveland cap compliant and gave them a little bit of flexibility. Emphasis on a little.
Watson and the Browns had agreed to a restructure back in December that made this move possible, while having an eye towards the future and a potential breakup in either 2026 or 2027.
At this point, especially after Haslam’s comments on Monday, the split between the two parties seems all but a given.
And it is in both side’s best interest to do.
When Watson was on the field for those 19 games, he played poorly and was nowhere near the player he was in Houston.
He was not the player that the Browns gave up the house to get.
That guy never arrived in Cleveland.
And it seems like he won’t be that guy ever again.
At least Browns fans can take solace in knowing their owner finally understands that.
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