Deshaun Watson Browns timeline: Inside disastrous trade, contract that brought quarterback to Cleveland

· Yahoo Sports

The 2026 Cleveland Browns engaged in the most depressing position battle of the summer to ultimately choose Deshaun Watson. The once-superstar talent has had a rough go of it since joining the franchise in 2022, but will get one more opportunity to prove himself.

There are — thanks to the many things Watson has said and done over the past couple years — legitimate questions about that decision. The Browns seemed to realize as much last year, drafting not one, but two possible quarterbacks of the future in the 2025 NFL Draft. Despite their presence on the roster, Watson won the job yet again this preseason.

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Given the various ups and downs Watson has experienced over his career, it’s worth re-evaluating how the Browns got to this point.

After a standout college career at Clemson, Watson entered the NFL Draft as one of the top prospects available. While he was the third quarterback taken off the board — Mitchell Trubisky and Patrick Mahomes went higher — Watson didn’t have to wait long. The Texans took him with the No. 12 overall pick in the draft, presumably giving the team a quarterback of the future after Brock Osweiler started 14 games for the team the previous season.

It didn’t take long for the Texans to throw Watson into the starting lineup. After the team benched Tom Savage at halftime in Week 1, Watson made his NFL debut, throwing a touchdown and an interception to close out the loss.

The following week, the team decided to stick with Watson under center. He led the team to a 13-9 win in his first-ever start, rushing for a score in the victory.

Watson only made five more starts for the Texans that season. During a November practice, Watson tore his ACL, missing the rest of the season. He finished with 19 passing touchdowns against eight interceptions. Despite only playing in seven games, Watson finished third in the Rookie of the Year voting.

Watson returned from his ACL injury and blossomed into a superstar with the Texans. Fresh off two straight Pro Bowl seasons, the Texans agree to pick up Watson’s fifth-year option.

But before the start of the 2020 NFL season, the team signs Watson to a four-year, $156 million extension. It solidifies his future with the franchise.

Watson responds by going out and throwing for a league-high 4,823 yards and a career-high 33 touchdowns. The Texans, however, went just 4-12.

Frustration with the state of the team and the front office leads to Watson demanding a trade from the Texans. The franchise does not seem interested in honoring that request.

A lawsuit emerges accusing Watson of going “too far” while getting a massage from a female masseuse.

Rumors of the lawsuit came to light a day earlier, leading to Watson issuing a preemptive statement claiming has has “never treated any woman with anything other than the utmost respect.”

In less than a month, a number of accusers file lawsuits against Watson. That number grows to 22 on April 5, leading to the Texans to finally issue a statement.

In the coming days, all but one woman will give up anonymity to proceed with the lawsuits against Watson.

HOUSTON, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 22: Deshaun Watson #4 of the Houston Texans looks on prior to their game against the New England Patriots at NRG Stadium on November 22, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)Carmen Mandato via Getty Images

Watson’s attorney issues a statement claiming all 22 women to file suit against the quarterback are lying.

With both the trade and the off-the-field allegations swirling, the Texans select Davis Mills in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft. While Mills wasn’t a high pick, the selection seemed to hint at the Texans worrying Watson wouldn’t be around, either due to a trade or a suspension from the NFL, which had started performing its own investigation.

With all those issues still unresolved, Watson reported to training camp in July. The Texans now seemed willing to trade the quarterback, who had not been placed on the NFL’s commissioner exempt list yet.

The Texans play their final regular-season game Jan. 9, finishing the season 4-13. Despite never being placed on the commissioner’s exempt list, Watson doesn’t play a single down of football for the Texans during the 2021 season.

A Houston grand jury did not find enough evidence to indict Watson of a criminal act. Watson still faced civil lawsuits and the NFL’s investigation, but avoiding criminal charges gave the Texans a runway to ship Watson out.

Watson waived a no-trade clause to join the Browns. In exchange for Watson, Cleveland gave up three first-round picks, a third-round pick and a fourth-round pick. The team immediately signed Watson to a five-year, fully-guaranteed, $230 million contract. That fully-guaranteed figure remained the most in the NFL until 2025, when Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen exceeded it.

After spending the summer settling lawsuits, Watson received an 11-game suspension from the NFL.

That suspension put him out until Week 13, when he would face his former franchise, the Texans, in his first game since the 2021 NFL season.

Watson returned from his suspension in time to start against the Texans. In his first Browns’ start, Watson threw for just 131 yards and an interception in a 27-14 loss.

He started the team’s remaining five games, but looked rusty, finishing the year with seven passing touchdowns against five interceptions.

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA - OCTOBER 22: Deshaun Watson #4 of the Cleveland Browns is attended to by medical staff after an apparent injury during the second quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium on October 22, 2023 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)Michael Hickey via Getty Images

Watson opened the 2023 NFL season as the Browns’ starter, and put up middling numbers in his first three games before missing time with a shoulder issue.

After struggling with the injury for a few weeks, Watson was eventually knocked out for the rest of the year during a Week 10 game against the Baltimore Ravens.

He finished the 2023 season with seven passing touchdowns and four interceptions in six games.

Watson again returned to start in 2024, but failed to put up strong numbers in seven starts before rupturing his Achilles against the Cincinnati Bengals. He finished the season with just five passing touchdowns and three interceptions. The Browns were among the worst offenses in the NFL at the time of Watson’s injury.

Watson experienced a setback and had to undergo yet another surgery on his Achilles tendon. The issue was expected to keep him out for potentially the entire 2025 NFL season.

The Watson era in Cleveland appeared to be over, as co-owner Jimmy Haslam admitted the trade for the quarterback was a “big swing and miss.”

Haslam continued:

“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 [Haslam] and I, so hold us accountable.”

Following multiple years of disappointing play and injuries from Watson, the Browns signal they are moving on, taking Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in the 2025 NFL Draft. Neither are high picks, as Gabriel went in the third round and Sanders was taken in the fifth round.

Those two were expected to compete with veteran Joe Flacco early on.

Watson made enough progress in his recovery to be cleared to return to practice in December. The move came as Sanders was prepping to make his third NFL start.

Gabriel had started a handful of games with the team as well before an injury pushed him out of the starting role.

Though Watson made progress in his recovery, he was never activated from the PUP list and did not appear in a game with the 2025 Browns.

Sanders closed out the season as the team’s starter, tossing seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions in seven starts. It was enough to earn Sanders a Pro Bowl nod after multiple other players opted out of the event.

With Watson back, the Browns opted to allow the veteran to compete for the starting job. Positive reports soon emerged, suggesting Watson was performing better than Sanders in minicamp.

In what was likely a deciding game in the Browns’ quarterback competition, Watson and Sanders put up middling numbers against the Buffalo Bills in a 31-7 loss.

Watson’s performance, however, drew more ire from fans, who booed him when he took the field and then booed him even more after a bad interception. Watson didn’t take kindly to that treatment, saying it was personal and “disrespectful.”

It’s 2026 and, somehow, Watson has returned. The Browns officially named him the team’s starter over Sanders on Monday.

The 2026 season will mark the final year of Watson’s $230 million fully guaranteed contract. Heading into 2026, here’s how he’s performed with the Browns since the trade:

Team

Seasons

Games

Yards

Completion percentage

Touchdowns

Interceptions

Record

Texans

5 (did not play in 2021)

54

14,539

66.2

104

36

28-25

Browns

4 (did not play in 2025)

19

3.365

61.2

19

12

9-10

In Watson’s first public appearance since that news, he apologized for the way he handled Saturday’s game, saying his emotions got the best of him.

Watson, who hasn’t thrown a pass in an NFL game since 2024, will open the year under center when the Browns travel to play the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1. The Browns will also play their Week 2 game on the road before Watson returns to Cleveland to take on the Carolina Panthers at home in Week 3.

Barring a fantastic start to the season, Watson may not receive the warmest response from Browns fans when — or if — he takes the field for that game.

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