Brown’s trade for QB Deshaun Watson

The Cleveland Browns and the Houston Texans made the following trade:

Brown receives:
QB Deshaun Watson

Texas receives:
2022 first round

Watson was selected to three Pro Bowls (2018-20) and led the NFL in passing yards in 2020 with 4,823. He scored the highest completion percentage in NFL history (67.8 percent) among all players with at least 1,500 passing attempts. Originally a first-round pick by Houston in 2017, Watson made 54 career appearances and completed 1,186 of 1,748 passes for 14,539 yards with 104 touchdowns, 36 interceptions and a rating of 104.5. He added 1,677 rushing yards with 17 touchdowns. Watson helped Clemson win the 2016 National Championship and won the Davey Brien Award as NCAA QB Best in 2015 and 2016.

“We have spent a significant amount of time exploring and investigating the opportunity to trade for Deshaun Watson. We fully understand and sympathize with the very personal feelings expressed about this decision. Our team’s overall assessment process was of the utmost importance due to the sensitive nature of his situation and the complex factors involved. We also understand that there is still some legal process going on and we will respect due process.It was pivotal that we meet with Andrew Berry and Kevin Stefansky with Deshawn for a face-to-face conversation, discuss our priorities, and hear from him firsthand about how he has handled his career both on and off the field. Humble, honest and candid.In our conversations, Deschamps made clear his commitment to leading our team; he understands and embraces the hard work required to build his name in both the community and the field.Those in-depth conversations, a comprehensive evaluation process, his dedication to being an amazing teammate and dedication to helping others within the NFL , and within the community, and through his charitable initiatives have provided the foundation for us to pursue Deshaun. We are confident in Deshaun and excited to move forward with him as a b center and support his genuine and resolute efforts.

Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager Andrew Perry:

“We look forward to Deshaun being our core team leader. We have done extensive investigative, legal and reference work over the past several months to provide us with the appropriate information needed to make an informed decision about going after him and moving forward with him as a quarterback. Deshaun has been among the best in the position and he understands the work required. to re-establish himself on and off the field in Cleveland. We are confident he will make positive contributions to our team and community as we support his return to football.”

Coach Kevin Stefansky:

“Our organization has provided a tremendous amount of background information about Deshaun. We understand the concerns and questions that exist but are confident Andrew and his crew have done extensive work to feel confident about his joining our organization. It was important for us to meet Deshaun in person as part of our team assessment process, we conducted A frank conversation about his approach to joining our organization and our community. I look forward to the opportunity to coach Deshaun, he is ready to put in the hard work required to help our team improve and make a positive impact in our community.”