Former HC warns Browns' Kevin Stefanski about Deshaun Watson plan

Per ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi, head coach Kevin Stefanski insisted that he is "not changing quarterbacks" shortly after his Cleveland Browns suffered a brutal 34-13 loss to the Washington Commanders on Sunday afternoon that dropped Cleveland to 1-4 on the season.

Former Dallas Cowboys head coach and current NBC personality Jason Garrett is among the numerous members of the NFL community who believe Stefanski should reconsider that stance sooner rather than later. 

"Your No. 1 job as a head coach is to play the right guys," Garrett said about Stefanski during NBC's "Football Night in America" program, as shared by Reice Shipley of Awful Announcing. "The guys that give you the best chance to win. You can’t watch the Cleveland Browns and say [Watson] gives you the best chance to win. You lose credibility in the locker room when you let other factors become involved. Money, when he was drafted, how long the contract is."

Rumblings about Stefanski possibly making a quarterback change hovered over the organization before Watson completed 15-of-28 passes for 125 yards with one touchdown, a lost fumble and seven sacks taken at Washington's Northwest Stadium. According to ESPN stats, Watson has now been sacked a league-high 26 times this season. He began Monday ranked last in the NFL among qualified players with a 21.0 adjusted QBR on the campaign. 

ESPN's Dan Graziano and Jason Lloyd of The Athletic agree with Garrett and think Stefanski needs to give backup Jameis Winston the nod for this coming Sunday's game at the 2-2 Philadelphia Eagles. However, The Athletic's Zak Keefer noted that "it’s hard to see the Browns benching [Watson] at any point this season" due to the fully guaranteed five-year, $230M contract he signed in March 2022. 

Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated previously hinted that Stefanski could receive "a slap on the wrist from his bosses" if he played Winston over Watson at this point of the season. On Sunday night, Browns insider Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland/The Land on Demand said that "any decision on Watson comes from above."

"He’s gotta sit back and take courage, Kevin Stefanski, and say, 'What’s best for our team?' I think right now, give Jameis Winston a shot," Garrett continued during the segment. "Maybe you get some new energy. Maybe there is a spark in this team. It doesn’t mean this is the decision for the rest of your life. You can make a two-way decision. A week from now, maybe you bring [Watson] back into it. But they can’t keep going down the road they are going down right now. They have no chance to win."

As of early Monday morning, there was no indication Stefanski would go down the route suggested by Garrett and others. At that same time, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Browns as 8.5-point betting underdogs for the Week 6 contest at the Eagles.