Deshaun Watson officially stepped into the starting quarterback role for the Cleveland Browns yesterday, confirming what everyone in Berea had been waiting for as the regular season looms. After all the chatter, all the anticipation, the team finally made it real.
Watson’s Post-Booing Confession and Practice Woes
The guy’s got a lot on his shoulders, no doubt. Before practice even kicked off, Watson fronted up about getting booed a couple days ago, admitting “My emotions got the best of me.” He was quick to add that his comments “weren’t intended to go at any of the fans in the city,” and that he absolutely understands the frustration. That’s a good move, right? Acknowledging the fan base is step one. But here’s the kicker from practice: while he definitely had some sharp throws that zipped around, there was one particular pass, a high ball to wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, that was a total miss. Seriously, that thing was overthrown so badly it absolutely should have been picked off. You just can’t have those kinds of mistakes from your QB1.
Defense Getting Dudes Back, But Injuries Still Haunt
On the defensive side, there’s some good news mixed with the usual camp injury headaches. They officially activated defensive tackle Maliek Collins from the injured list, and the dude was looking sharp in individual drills. Collins is expected to jump right back into the starting lineup, which is HUGE for that defensive line. Every bit of depth helps, especially with defensive end Alex Wright already on season-ending injured reserve. That means Isaiah McGuire is now the starting defensive end opposite Jared Verse. To beef up the edge, the Browns brought in veteran defensive end Derek Barnett, and they’ve even got defensive tackle Mike Hall getting a ton of reps out there. Linebacker Carson Schwesinger, who’s been sidelined basically all camp, at least dressed for practice and got some individual work in. That’s usually the first step back to full team drills, so fingers crossed for that guy. And shoutout to cornerback Denzel Ward, who had a sweet punch out. Is he trying to perfect ball denial after the catch? Maybe!
What’s Next: Final Game and Roster Crunch Time
Looking ahead, it’s crunch time. Quarterback reps are locked down now: Watson with the ones, Shedeur Sanders with the twos. Quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel and Taylen Green are each slated to play a half in the final preseason game this Thursday night. A few other notes from the field: running back Quinshon Judkins and wide receiver Cedric Tillman both returned to practice, which is awesome. On the flip side, wide receiver Isaiah Bond is in concussion protocol, and offensive tackle Spencer Fano sat out with a minor injury. They’ve got just one more training camp practice today before Thursday’s final preseason game. After that, it’s roster cuts, and those are going to be brutal. This week truly marks the end of summer training camp reports.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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