Browns co-owner admits ‘big swing-and-miss’ with Deshaun Watson

PALM BEACH, Fla. — Cleveland Browns co-owner Jimmy Haslam on Monday called the team’s trade for quarterback Deshaun Watson a “big swing-and-miss.”

In March 2022, Cleveland acquired Watson from the Houston Texans in a trade package that included three first-round picks. The Browns then signed Watson to a $230 million contract that was fully guaranteed.

Since joining the Browns, Watson has started just 19 games because of suspension and injuries, posted one of the lowest Total QBRs in the NFL and suffered consecutive season-ending injuries in 2023 and 2024.

“We took a big swing-and-miss with Deshaun,” Haslam said Monday at the league’s annual meeting. “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.”

Watson, a three-time Pro Bowl selection with the Texans, tore his right Achilles tendon in October and underwent a second operation in January after retearing his Achilles. The Browns said Watson is expected to miss a significant portion of the 2025 season.

His legal troubles have helped to derail his career in Cleveland. Watson served an 11-game suspension in 2022 after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct during massage sessions. A pair of Texas grand juries declined to pursue criminal charges against Watson, but he served his suspension after the NFL and the NFL Players Association reached a settlement on his discipline.

Cleveland still owes Watson $46 million in each of the next two seasons.

The Browns’ quarterback room currently consists of Watson and Kenny Pickett, whom the team traded for in mid-March. Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said Pickett will get an opportunity to compete to start in 2025.

Despite the admission that the Watson trade was unsuccessful, Haslam said the team is not tied to taking a quarterback with the second overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

“It would be great if we could get ‘the quarterback,’ but we’re not going to force it,” Haslam said. “We’re going to be patient and we’re going to try to accumulate as many really good football players as we can.”