For years, the Cleveland Browns stood by Deshaun Watson, despite innumerable on- and off-field issues. On Tuesday, roughly three years after acquiring the quarterback via trade and rewarding him with a record $230 million fully guaranteed contract, Browns ownership declared the move “a big swing and a miss.”
Team owner Jimmy Haslam used the phrase at Tuesday’s NFL owners meetings, via Cleveland.com, adding that fans and media can hold “me and Dee accountable,” a reference to his wife and co-owner.
“We took a big swing and miss with Deshaun,” Haslam said. “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. [It] was an entire organization decision, and it ends with Dee and I, so hold us accountable.”
The declaration marks a stark contrast to the team’s previous public sentiment regarding Watson, who had long drawn consistent support from organizational leadership.
The Browns infamously traded three first-round draft picks to acquire Watson from the Houston Texans in 2022, even as the quarterback faced dozens of civil lawsuits alleging serial sexual misconduct, then instantly gave him more guaranteed money than…
