-
Daniel Oyefusi
Berea, Ohio — The cleveland browns quarterback will not activate deshaun watson From the physically unable to perform list, coach Kevin Stefanski said Tuesday.
The decision means Watson, who tore his right Achilles tendon in October 2024 and then had a second surgery to repair it in January, will miss the 2025 season.
The deadline to activate Watson from the PUP list was Tuesday, when the practice window closed. Over the past three weeks, Watson has practiced individually and led the scout team on offense. He spent the first three months of the season on the list, and the Browns opened their practice window on December 3.
“Whatever was asked of him, he did a great job,” Stefanski said. “I’ve seen him work very hard, whether it’s in the training room, indoors with the coaches, now being on the practice field for the last time. Just felt like it was the right decision for him and for us. His focus will be on helping this football team and staying healthy and getting stronger and all those types of things.”
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported earlier this month that the Browns plan to add Watson to their roster next season. Although Watson was unlikely to play this season after returning to practice, according to Schefter, Cleveland opened its practice window to give him his first practice this season so he would not be sidelined from consistent football until next spring.
Watson, 30, has one year remaining on a five-year, $230 million contract that is fully guaranteed. Cleveland is still owed Watson next season’s salary of $46 million, and his cap hit for the 2026 season is $80.7 million, the largest in the NFL.
If the Browns waive Watson before June 1, they will face an NFL-record dead cap charge of $131 million. If Cleveland releases Watson with designation after June 1, the dead cap hit will be split between $80 million in 2026 and the remaining $50 million in 2027.
There is a record of dead cap money denver broncos with Russell Wilson At $85 million, which was divided into $53 million and $32 million charges over two years.
Watson has been limited to just 19 games due to suspensions and injuries since the Browns traded three first-round draft picks houston texans and gave him a fully guaranteed $230 million contract through March 2022.
Watson began his Browns tenure with an 11-game suspension after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual harassment and inappropriate conduct during a massage session. Watson also missed the final eight games of the 2023 season after undergoing surgery on his throwing shoulder.
Since debuting with the Browns, Watson has posted a total QBR of 33.1, which would rank only above tennessee titans Cheater cam ward If Watson had played enough games to qualify. In March, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam called the Watson trade a “big swing-and-miss”.
Cheater shadure sanders He has started Cleveland’s last five games and is expected to start the Browns’ final two games of the season. According to ESPN Analytics, the Browns are 3-12 and have the third-highest chance (24.2%) to get the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
