Jimmy Haslam gave up on Deshaun Watson 15 months ago when the Browns owner called the team’s signing of the quarterback “a big swing and miss.” After playing only 19 games in four seasons, Watson is entering the final year of his contract, competing with Shedeur Sanders for the starting job.
A reporter asked Watson on Wednesday about Haslam’s “swing-and-miss” comment, and the three-time Pro Bowler made clear he hasn’t given up on himself.
“One of my favorite baseball players that I’ve been watching is Bryce Harper,” Watson said, via Chris Easterling of the Akron Beacon Journal. “Sometimes he swings, but he stands back up and he gets another opportunity and he hits a home run. So you never know what the opportunity might show up, and that’s what I have right now.”
Watson hasn’t played since Oct. 20, 2024, when he tore his Achilles tendon against the Bengals. He tore it again a few months later.
He returned to practice last season, but the Browns never activated him from the reserve/PUP list.
Watson lost 11 games to a suspension in 2022 and 11 games to shoulder injuries in 2023.
“I could say that now I’m fully healthy, ready to go,” Watson said. “This last year I was able to conquer that. Then, I’d just say I haven’t been 100 percent since the Tennessee game [in Week 3] in ’23.”
Watson has not made the Pro Bowl since 2020 when he was with the Texans. Houston sat him in 2021 before trading him to the Browns in 2022.