Former NFL GM names reason Deshaun Watson is finding success with Browns this season
from Zac Wassink with YardBarker.com/www.yardbarker.comm
The play of Cleveland Browns starting quarterback Deshaun Watson over three straight victories sparked renewed rumors suggesting that Cleveland could trade either Shedeur Sanders or fellow backup Dillon Gabriel this fall.
Perhaps most remarkable about Watson’s latest performances is that he largely looked like a lost cause during Cleveland’s 34-10 Week 1 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sept. 13. For a piece published on Tuesday, NFL insider Jeff Howe of The Athletic spoke with multiple league executives who credited first-year Browns head coach Todd Monken for getting the most out of Watson’s talents since Week 2.
What Todd Monken is doing right for Deshaun Watson
Specifically, the league executives mentioned how Cleveland’s use of run-pass option plays, quick passes and scenarios that involve getting “Watson on the move” have benefitted the 31-year-old.
“That plays to Deshaun’s strength,” one former general manager explained. “Monken knows how to call a game and understand what is happening in the moment. He is a good play caller who takes what’s there and isn’t stuck to what he designed with his staff during the week. Nothing fancy. Just very smart coaching.”
Following the 2022 season, the Baltimore Ravens hired Monken as their new offensive coordinator. In his first campaign with the club, quarterback Lamar Jackson earned MVP honors for the second time in his career. Before that, Monken served as Georgia’s offensive coordinator from 2020 through the 2022 college season.
As for Watson, Pro-Football-Reference stats show that he ended Week 4 ranked 17th in the NFL among qualified players with a 58.4 adjusted QBR and eighth with a 101.2 passer rating on the season. Over four games, he tossed six touchdown passes and two interceptions. He also rushed for 127 yards on 31 carries.
Outsiders shouldn’t be surprised Deshaun Watson is playing well under Todd Monken
“(Monken’s) success with Lamar shouldn’t be discounted,” one coach told Howe. “He knows how to run the ball and be explosive in the (play)-action game. He did an awesome job at UGA, and the production in Baltimore was outstanding.”
Watson will look to remain hot when the 3-1 Browns play at the 1-3 New York Jets on Oct. 11. As of Tuesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had Cleveland as a 2.5-point road underdog for that game.