Browns plan to play Watson in preseason finale

The Cleveland Browns plan to play Deshaun Watson in their preseason finale against the Seattle Seahawks, head coach Kevin Stefanski said Monday. It would be the quarterback’s first game action since undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery in November.

Stefanski’s comments come one day after he said that Watson would not play in the second preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings but that his shoulder has been medically cleared for contact. Watson will get the “vast majority” of reps in the joint practices the Browns are hosting with Minnesota on Wednesday and Thursday, Stefanski said previously.

Watson did not play in the Browns’ preseason opener against the Green Bay Packers but has thrown in all but one of Cleveland’s training camp practices after throwing every other day during the offseason workout program.

Suspension and injuries have limited Watson to 12 games since the Browns traded six draft picks for him and gave him a fully guaranteed $230 million contract in March 2022. Watson’s 41.9 QBR since making his debut in Cleveland is the sixth lowest in the NFL during that time.