Deshaun Watson
29-Year-Old
IR
Injury Achilles
Est. Return 2/10/2025
2024 Pass/Rush Stats
YDS
1148
TD
5
INT
3
YDS
148
TD
1
Rest-of-Season Projections
2024 Fantasy Outlook
For the second season in a row, Watson was limited to six games last year. This time it was shoulder injuries, including a fracture that ended his season Week 10. Watson's stats were near copies of the poor numbers he produced the year before. His 69.0 percent on-target rate was less than a percentage point higher than in 2022, ranking 31st among QBs with at least 170 attempts. His YPA was the same 6.5 (28th). The difference was he stretched the field last year. His average target depth jumped two full yards to 9.2 (3rd), and 12.9 percent of his attempts traveled at least 20 yards (3rd) after just 5.3 percent (35th) in 2022. It amounted to more than two extra deep shots per game. Not that it changed much -- Watson had only 13 more yards than the year before and the same number of TD passes (seven). Perhaps he'll get back to pushing the ball downfield this season like during his glory years in Houston when his average target depth was 9.0 yards and he actually completed the passes at a high rate. He at least has an excellent collection of playmakers to make things happen. The Browns traded for Jerry Jeudy to join wide receivers Amari Cooper and Elijah Moore, tight end David Njoku and running back Nick Chubb. Watson's rushing has remained steady the last two years (26.5 rush yards per game, prorating to 450 for a full season), so if he gets the passing going there's still a chance to be some semblance of the dynamic QB he was for his first four years. Read Past Outlooks
RANKS
Surgery completed
Watson underwent successful surgery Friday to repair a ruptured right Achilles' tendon, Kelsey Russo of the Browns' official site reports.
ANALYSIS
With his surgery going off without any complications, the 29-year-old quarterback should be back to full health for the start of the 2025 season, provided he steers clear of setbacks during what will be a lengthy rehab process. Though the Achilles surgery could curb Watson's rushing ability moving forward, the bigger question is whether he'll re-emerge as a starter in 2025 for the Browns or another team. He's still on the Browns' books through 2026 on a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract, but Watson has hardly resembled the franchise quarterback that Cleveland thought it was getting when they acquired him in March 2022. Through his 19 career starts with Cleveland over three seasons, Watson has led the team to 9-10 record while completing 61.2 percent of his throws for 6.0 yards per attempt and a 19:12 TD:INT to go with 465 rushing yards and three more scores.
With his surgery going off without any complications, the 29-year-old quarterback should be back to full health for the start of the 2025 season, provided he steers clear of setbacks during what will be a lengthy rehab process. Though the Achilles surgery could curb Watson's rushing ability moving forward, the bigger question is whether he'll re-emerge as a starter in 2025 for the Browns or another team. He's still on the Browns' books through 2026 on a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract, but Watson has hardly resembled the franchise quarterback that Cleveland thought it was getting when they acquired him in March 2022. Through his 19 career starts with Cleveland over three seasons, Watson has led the team to 9-10 record while completing 61.2 percent of his throws for 6.0 yards per attempt and a 19:12 TD:INT to go with 465 rushing yards and three more scores.
NFL Stats
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Fantasy/Red Zone Stats
See red zone opportunities inside the 20, 10 and 5-yard lines along with the percentage of time they converted the opportunity into a touchdown.
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Advanced NFL Stats
How do Deshaun Watson's 2024 advanced stats compare to other quarterbacks?
This section compares his advanced stats with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank.
The longer the bar, the better it is for the player.
Bad Pass %
19.4%Avg Target Depth
7.7 YdsSack Rate
13.3%Avg Receiver YAC
4.3 YdsReceiver Drop %
5.1%Loading Advanced NFL Stats...
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2024 NFL Game Log
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Snap Distribution / Depth Chart
Snap Counts
Snap %
This Week's Opposing Pass Defense
How does the Chargers pass defense compare to other NFL teams this season?
The bars represents the team's percentile rank (based on QB Rating Against). The longer the bar, the better their pass defense is. The team and position group ratings only include players that are currently on the roster and not on injured reserve. The list of players in the table only includes defenders with at least 3 attempts against them.
vs Chargers
Sunday, Nov 3rd at 1:00PM
Overall QB Rating Against
64.4
Cornerbacks
73.8
Safeties
50.6
Linebackers
64.7
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2024 Deshaun Watson Split Stats
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Measurables Review
View College Player Page
How do Deshaun Watson's measurables compare to other quarterbacks?
This section compares his draft workout metrics with players at the same position. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that metric and it would be considered average.
Height
6' 3"Weight
223 lbs40-Yard Dash
4.66 secShuttle Time
4.31 secCone Drill
6.95 secVertical Jump
32.5 inBroad Jump
119 inHand Length
9.75 inArm Length
33.00 in
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
When Watson finally got back under center Week 13 last year, he looked like a quarterback who hadn’t played in a season and a half. Of 38 QBs with at least 170 attempts, Watson ranked 32nd in on-target percentage (68.2) and 36th in completion percentage (58.2). He failed to top 200 yards passing in four of his six games, with his 6.5 YPA ranking 32nd. Watson especially struggled throwing deep, completing only four of 17 attempts beyond 20 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. On a positive note, he rushed for 175 yards, showing at least part of his game was up to the task. Getting his arm back to his pre-suspension level is partly a matter of reps. Watson missed the offseason program last year and after participating in training camp and then was away from the team for three months. The long layoff from game action likely is responsible for his apparent slower processing -- Watson averaged a league-high 3.27 seconds before throwing -- and resulting struggles. Plus, last season he stepped into an offense that was tailored for QB Jacoby Brissett. This season, the scheme is his, and he'll have additional weapons after the Browns traded for Elijah Moore and drafted Cedric Tillman (Round 3) to join Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones at wide receiver. Nick Chubb returns after a 1,500-yard rushing season, and TE David Njoku is coming off a career-high 58 receptions. It doesn’t take much faith to believe Watson can return to a top-10 fantasy quarterback, if not the top-5 QB we saw from 2018-20.
More Fantasy News
Surgery set for Friday
Watson is scheduled to undergo surgery Friday to repair his ruptured right Achilles' tendon, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
ANALYSIS
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Moves to IR
The Browns placed Watson (Achilles) on injured reserve Tuesday.
ANALYSIS
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Achilles tear confirmed
Watson (Achilles) is done for the season after an MRI on Monday confirmed a torn Achilles, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
ANALYSIS
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Could be done for season
Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski noted after Sunday's 21-14 loss to the Bengals that Watson is believed to have suffered a season-ending Achilles injury but will undergo testing to confirm the severity of the issue, Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Sustains Achilles injury Sunday
Watson won't return to Sunday's game against the Bengals after suffering an Achilles injury.
ANALYSIS
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Not guaranteed to start next year
Browns coach Kevin Stefanski declined to commit to Watson as his starting quarterback for 2025 while discussing the QB's recovery from his upcoming Achilles surgery. Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
ANALYSIS
The coach had repeatedly stood by Watson this season despite his struggles on the field, but he wouldn't extend that support to next season when speaking to the media Monday. Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Sunday's loss to the Bengals, and Stefanski may simply be waiting to make sure the QB's rehab is successful. Given the two years and $92 million left on Watson's contract, an amount which actually carries a much higher cap hit due to prior restructuring, it would be virtually impossible for Cleveland to cut or trade him this offseason. Whether the Browns would consider paying him that much money simply to be a backup remains to be seen, however.
The coach had repeatedly stood by Watson this season despite his struggles on the field, but he wouldn't extend that support to next season when speaking to the media Monday. Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Sunday's loss to the Bengals, and Stefanski may simply be waiting to make sure the QB's rehab is successful. Given the two years and $92 million left on Watson's contract, an amount which actually carries a much higher cap hit due to prior restructuring, it would be virtually impossible for Cleveland to cut or trade him this offseason. Whether the Browns would consider paying him that much money simply to be a backup remains to be seen, however.