Deshaun Watson made waves when, after the Houston Texans traded him amid off-field controversy, the Cleveland Browns inked him to a fully guaranteed contract, worth $230 million over five seasons.
Watson has played in 19 games since then, missing the entire 2025 season after re-rupturing his Achilles last January.
However, heading into a potentially pivotal offseason, Watson got a different kind of guarantee.
Ex-Texans QB Deshaun Watson Expected to Receive Significant Opportunity
GettyDeshaun Watson #4 of the Houston Texans looks on before a game against the Carolina Panthers.
Reception Perceptionâs James Koh said, âDeshaun Watson is 100 percent getting another chance at startingâ in a post on X from January 28 that, in and of itself, seems far-fetched based on how the former Texans starâs career has gone in recent seasons.
When healthy, Watson was ineffective for the Browns. He has thrown for 3,365 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions with 61.2% completion rate during his tenure.
Still, Kohâs read on the situation is not as off-base as it may seem, including for the Browns.
92.3 The Fanâs Ken Carman shared a text during âThe Ken Carman Show with Anthon Limaâ on January 29, in which the sender said new Browns head coach and former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken âwants Watson.â
Carman and Lima questioned whether Watson was a better option than Sheduer Sanders, who is also expected to benefit from Monkenâs hire.
Watsonâs mobility and $46 million in guaranteed money were key factors in the duoâs discourse.
Watson, 30, is signed through the 2026 season. He was an asset as a mentor for Sanders and the rookieâs fellow 2025 draftee, Dillon Gabriel, this past season. Opinions remain split about his place in a potential QB battle in Cleveland.
However, it remains most likely that Watson will remain in Cleveland next season, largely due to the Brownsâ financial commitment to the former Texans star.
Deshaun Watson Contract Looms Large
GettyDeshaun Watson #4 of the Cleveland Browns on the sideline during a game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
While the Texans plot their future with C.J. Stroudâshort and/or long-termâthe Browns have another major decision to make on Watson this offseason.
Spotracâs Michael Ginnitti noted Watson was a looming issue in two senses.
âIt would behoove the Browns to tread extremely lightly in regards to pushing additional salary cap into the 2027 season (and beyond), as Deshaun Watsonâs parting shot (at least $50M of void cap) awaits,â Ginnitti wrote in December 2025. âThe other elephant in the room here of course is QB Deshaun Watson, who boasts a league-high $80.7M cap figure for the upcoming season.â
âLong story short, Watson will remain on the books through 2026, and Cleveland will designate him a Post 6/1 release prior to that 3rd league day, thus spreading the leftover salary cap across 2027 & 2028. For now, that amounts to $50.4M in total.â
Ginnitti explained how converting âdummy/voidâ seasons on Watsonâs contract into âactual salariedâ years and a $200 million âpoison pillâ for 2029 that vests in 2027 loom large.
The Browns could do another conversion, but âthat final dead cap figure will increase.â
The Watson trade, including the contract that followed, remains a case study for the Texans and Browns. Now, it holds the latter organization in limbo, while the former potentially prepares to negotiate with its current star QB, Stroud, following an abysmal playoff performance.
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