The Cleveland Browns will be watching the playoffs at home once again, and they have only themselves to blame for this mess. Between lackluster quarterback play and poor situational football the results being what they are is hardly surprising.
Cleveland expected Deshaun Watson to finally turn back the clock to his Houston days after surrounding him with the best trio of wide receivers he has had in years, and he responded by playing so pathetically that Cleveland was unable to win games without all-world defensive performances.
Watson's torn Achilles ended his season and threw the 2025 outlook into turmoil. Even though he's missed a big chunk of time, it's not unreasonable to lay most of the responsibility for this extremely cursed season squarely at Watson's feet after his struggles early in the season.
Bleacher Report put the lion's share of the blame on Cleveland's inability to move off Watson. While the Browns have seen extremely volatile quarterback play since Watson went down, the hole he dug for this team was so deep that no one could drag them out of it.
Deshaun Watson primarily blamed for Browns ill-fated 2024 season
While Jameis Winston's perpetual battle with turnovers led to a benching ahead of Week 16, he at least gave the offense a pulse. Jerry Jeudy has already crossed 1,000 receiving yards due to his connection with Winston, which is something Watson seems wholly incapable of doing right now.
Watson has his money guaranteed already, and he was playing like someone who was mentally checked out before his injury. Home fans were upset with his play and demeanor, while everyone with a shred of morality was furious with his laundry list of legal issues. No one likes Watson, and it seems like he's aware of that fact.
The Browns are still tied to Watson for the next few years, as they would incur debilitating nine-figure cap hits if they decided to cut him or trade him. This makes it even tougher for them to fully turn the page, as any young quarterback or stopgap veteran will have to dance around the Watson albatross.
The Browns are lying in the bed they made with Watson. It stinks this fanbase has to be subjected to that, but the front office has no one to blame for this mess but themselves after giving him a contract no one in the league would have matched.
