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There may not be another player in the NFL with more to prove next season than Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Two years ago, the Browns acquired Watson in a blockbuster trade with the Houston Texans, surrendering a king’s ransom of draft picks in return for him. Cleveland then handed Watson a massive, fully-guaranteed $230 million contract, which was unprecedented.
Needless to say, it has not worked out very well for the Browns thus far.
Watson has played in just 12 games since joining Cleveland, as he served an 11-game suspension for sexual misconduct allegations in 2022 and was knocked out with a shoulder injury after just six contests last season.
The 28-year-old underwent surgery to repair the afflicted shoulder and is recovering, but he is expected to be ready for Week 1.
There is a lot of pressure on Watson going into 2024, and former NFL receiver and current Fox Sports analyst James Jones recently had some harsh words for the signal-caller.
“If we’re really, truly keeping it 100, Deshaun Watson has been one of the worst quarterbacks in our league,” Jones said on FS1’s Speak. “And I can say that because we have seen how special he could be. Since he’s got to the Cleveland Browns, there have been a lot of ‘what are you doing’ plays. We can say eventually, the Houston dude will come back. But maybe the Houston dude is gone.”
.@89JonesNTAF explains why Deshaun Watson has a lot of pressure on him to perform well this season. pic.twitter.com/HAsnPyP5zi
— Speak (@SpeakOnFS1) May 14, 2024
Jones added that if Watson does not play well next season, the Browns will get rid of him, noting that 39-year-old Joe Flacco managed to take Cleveland to the playoffs this past year.
In the six games he played in 2023, Watson threw for 1,115 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 61.4 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 84.3.
The Browns did go 5-1 in his starts, but that had more to do with their defense than it had to do with Watson actually playing good football.
Watson made three straight Pro Bowls with the Texans between 2018 and 2020, so we all know that he is capable of doing great things on the field.
We’ll see if Deshaun Watson can bounce back and return to the MVP-caliber form he had in Houston and lead Cleveland to its second straight postseason appearance next season.
His career may depend on it.
More must-reads:
- Toughest, easiest four-game stretches in the AFC North for 2024
- Replacing a franchise NFL QB is a monumentally difficult task
- The 'Most passing yards in a season by team' quiz
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DK Metcalf makes huge claim about Steelers defense
D.K. Metcalf has faced plenty of steep competition through his first six NFL seasons, both during games and practice, but the star wide receiver has noticed something different in his first training camp with the Pittsburgh Steelers. During an interview with Ian Rapoport and Steve Smith of NFL Network on Sunday, Metcalf discussed some of his first impressions of the Steelers. He spoke about how challenging it has been to go up against cornerbacks Joey Porter Jr., Jalen Ramsey and Darius Slay every day. When asked how the practice competition compares to what he saw with the Seattle Seahawks, Metcalf made a bold claim about his new teammates. "You don't want my opinion, because I think they're the best defense I've ever seen," Metcalf said. "There's some dogs everywhere on the field, and I tip my hat to them because they come to work every day and we don't have any choice but to get better." There is no question that the Steelers should have one of the best defensive backfields in the NFL on paper. While they sent five-time Pro Bowl safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Miami Dolphins in the Ramsey trade, their cornerback trio of Ramsey, Porter and Slay is as talented as any in the league. The Steelers allowed 20.4 points per game last year, which ranked eighth in the NFL. Their pass defense surrendered 228 yards per game, which only ranked 25th. If Metcalf's assessment is accurate, Pittsburgh should show great improvement against the pass in 2025.
Yankees’ Ben Rice sounds subtle alarm after embarrassing sweep vs. Marlins
Armed with the gigantic task of holding the fort while Aaron Judge recovers from an elbow injury, the New York Yankees made a mess of themselves in a big way this past weekend in a three-game series against the Miami Marlins. On Sunday, the Yankees were thoroughly outplayed by the Marlins on all sides of the ball, suffering a 7-3 defeat and a series sweep at the hands of the Marlins. Now, it’s not like the Marlins have a bad baseball team. They are hovering around .500 on the season, so it’s not like the Yankees were that heavily favored heading into the series especially amid Judge’s injury. However, this is a continuation of the Yankees’ poor play as of late, and they have now fallen to third place in the AL East standings. For first baseman Ben Rice, the team has to wake up from this rut they’re in lest bigger consequences happen later in the season. “I wouldn’t say there’s concern, but I would say, I think a little sense of urgency would be good for us going forward. Just to continue do what we can to win ballgames. And that’s gonna be do all the little things. It’s gonna be, hopefully, we sync up pitching and hitting. That’s it,” Rice told reporters after the Yankees’ loss, via YES Network. “No, I wouldn’t say that [we lack a sense of urgency]. But I would say, as we continue to move deeper into the season here, in this playoff race, we’re gonna have to pick it up eventually.” Poor pitching was what undid the Yankees most often during the month of July, and in August thus far, they haven’t put it together on either side of the ball at the same time. Yankees are running hot and cold on both ends of the ball As Rice said, the Yankees are going to have to sync their hitting and pitching to avoid suffering the same fate they did in that three-game series against the Marlins. That Saturday loss to the Marlins might be the Yankees’ most frustrating of the year, mustering just two hits and no runs — an uncharacteristic showing for the team that’s tied for the lead in total runs scored in all of MLB. They have no choice but to soldier on, heading into a three-game set against the Texas Rangers next before yet another crucial series, this time against a division leader in the Houston Astros.
Red Sox having fun at home as Royals come to Fenway
The Boston Red Sox will have plenty of momentum and a rested bullpen when they open a three-game series against the visiting Kansas City Royals on Monday. Boston completed a three-game sweep by beating the visiting Houston Astros 6-1 on Sunday, running its winning streak to five games. The Red Sox have registered seven victories in their past eight games overall. "I feel like we're kind of figuring out our identity a little bit," Red Sox outfielder Rob Refsnyder said. "Guys are settling into their roles. The trade deadline has passed and it's go time." Center fielder/second baseman Ceddanne Rafaela added: "Our mindset is not only on the Yankees, it's just playing good baseball and trying to win the division." Boston has won its past five home games. The Red Sox are 12-1 in their last 13 home contests, and they own a 37-21 record at Fenway Park this season, the third-highest home win total in the majors. "We're much better than the last two years," Boston manager Alex Cora said. "We're healthier. ... We have a complete team. Guys are playing with an edge now. You can tell. Like I said, this place (Fenway Park) -- it's fun. It's fun again. "We just have to continue. Kansas City is playing good baseball. We have to show up (Monday) and try to win a game." Red Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito pitched a season-high eight innings and limited Houston to one run on three hits during the Sunday win. "Between him and (Brayan) Bello, they're doing an outstanding job," Cora said. "So we have capable guys who can go out there and compete. ... We trust our guys. All of them -- Bello, Gio and obviously (Garrett) Crochet has been amazing the last two months." Bello (7-5, 3.19 ERA) is Boston's scheduled starter for Monday. He is 1-0 with a 3.57 ERA in 17 2/3 innings over three career games (all starts) against the Royals. Left-hander Bailey Falter (7-5, 3.73 ERA) is expected to make his Kansas City debut as the Monday starter. Falter, who was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates before the Thursday trade deadline, is 1-1 with a 7.94 ERA in two games (one start) in his career against Boston. He has seven strikeouts and one walk in 5 2/3 innings against the Red Sox. Kansas City also acquired rookie right-hander Ryan Bergert from the San Diego Padres on Thursday. He is tentatively scheduled to start Tuesday in Boston. "(The) message to those guys is, 'Look, your job is to help us ... give us the best chance to win,'" Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. "'Go out there and compete your butt off for as much as you can.'" Like Boston, Kansas City has been playing winning baseball lately. The Royals came from behind to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 7-4 in 10 innings on Sunday. Kansas City trailed 2-1 before tying the game in the eighth and then scoring five runs in the 10th. The victory gave Kansas City two wins in the three-game series at Toronto. The Royals have won four of their past five games and each of their past four series. The Royals will not have Steven Cruz available in the near future. The right-handed reliever, who left the Saturday game against the Blue Jays after feeling discomfort in his right shoulder, was placed on the 15-day injured list before the Sunday contest. Cruz has a 3.61 ERA in 42 1/3 innings (43 games) this season.
Keep an Eye on Jacory Croskey-Merritt in Training Camp
Washington Commanders seventh-round rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt is quickly turning heads just one week into training camp. After recording the highest deceleration in Shrine Bowl history (-7.29 yards/second squared), he is now showing that ability to make quick jump-cuts in a sea of defenders at Commanders training camp. Not Your Average 7th-rounder Drafted out of Arizona, Croskey-Merritt appeared in just one game for the Wildcats— not due to injury, but because the NCAA revoked his eligibility over a redshirt dispute dating back to his time at Alabama State. In his final full season at New Mexico, he posted these stats: 189 carries 1,190 rushing yards 18 total touchdowns These numbers, along with earning Shrine Bowl MVP, show that Croskey-Merritt has the talent of a mid-round draft pick; he just did not have the opportunity to show that in his last season of college. Wide Open Running Back Room In what was one of the best offenses in the league last year, the Commanders struggled greatly rushing the football outside of Jayden Daniels. The Commanders were the only team last year in which their team’s leading rusher was not a running back. Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler were the two main running backs last season, and their production was simply not good enough to take the pressure off Daniels. Combined, they averaged just 87.7 rushing yards per game. In contrast, Saquon Barkley averaged 125.3 rushing yards per game by himself. Croskey-Merritt is more likely to compete with Robinson Jr. for early-down carries, given his limited involvement in the passing game during college. Ekeler will likely continue to be the third-down back as he has become one of the best receiving running backs in the league. Already Getting First Team Reps On Tuesday, Croskey-Merritt got reps working with the first team. This is not normal for most seventh-round picks. Not only is he getting those reps— he is shining in them. Reports are saying he is quick, decisive and is showing excellent vision. Jacory Croskey-Merritt has the potential to be a steal for the Commanders. Not only that— he has the opportunity to earn consistent carries in a weak running back room. If he can do what he is doing in training camp in the preseason, do not be surprised when he gets the bulk of carries in the regular season.
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