Cleveland Browns quarterback has already had one of the more unusual careers in modern NFL history.
After an acclaimed college career at Clemson, the Houston Texans drafted him 12th overall in 2017, two picks after the Kansas City Chiefs selected . Unlike Mahomes, Watson played early in his rookie season. Almost immediately, he looked like a phenomenon.
That October, his first full month as a starter, Watson threw 16 touchdowns, setting the NFL record for touchdown passes by a rookie in a calendar month. He was named AFC Offensive Player of the Month.
Watson was an MVP candidate in just his first season. Then, on Nov. 2, 2017, he tore his ACL on a non-contact play during practice, ending his season.
He returned the following year and established himself as a solid franchise quarterback. By his fourth season as a starter, he had recaptured much of his rookie form. Despite the Texans winning just four games in 2020, Watson led the NFL in passing yards (4,823), completion percentage (70.2%), and passer rating (112.4).
By the end of that season, there was a growing perception that Watson had moved past Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson as the one true rival to Mahomes, who had already won one Super Bowl and appeared in another.
At the time, Watson said he envisioned himself and Mahomes as the “next Tom Brady and Peyton Manning.” He was not alone. Colin Cowherd, Michael Vick, Jason Whitlock, Stephen A. Smith, Max Kellerman, and ProFootballTalk also made the comparison.
Then his career unraveled.
That offseason, 27 women filed civil lawsuits accusing Watson of sexual misconduct and assault during massage therapy appointments. The Texans sat him for the entire 2021 season.
The Browns traded for him the following year, sending Houston three first-round picks. Cleveland and Watson then agreed to an unprecedented five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract, the largest guaranteed deal in NFL history at the time.
Watson was suspended for six regular-season games to start the 2022 season by arbitrator Sue L. Robinson as a result of the sexual misconduct allegations.
He made his Browns debut later that season and struggled. The struggles continued the following year, and injuries ensued.
From 2022 through 2025, Watson played in just 19 games. He suffered two Achilles ruptures in that span. Statistically, he was among the worst quarterbacks in the entire NFL.
In one of the more stunning public acknowledgments by an NFL owner, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam acknowledged that trading for Watson was a mistake that set the franchise back years.
“We took a big swing and miss with Deshaun,” Jimmy Haslam told reporters in 2025. “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. (It) was an entire organization decision and it ends with Dee and I, so hold us accountable.”
Despite the admission, Watson remained on the roster.
Ahead of this season, disdain for Watsons play and character united nearly every corner of sports media. Between the scandal, the contract, the performance, and the attitude, Watson had become perhaps the most disliked athlete in American sports. Some outlets made that case.
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