Browns QB Watson preps for 1st start since 2024
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BEREA -- Deshaun Watson hasn't lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars as a starting quarterback. That might be one of the few things the Cleveland Browns have going for them heading into Sunday's opener.
"This is 2026, man. So, I'm not going into this game looking at the 7-0 record at all," Watson said.
Watson has averaged 222.7 passing yards against the Jaguars with 11 touchdowns (eight passing, three rushing) and a 94.6 passer rating in those starts.
Watson's last win came in Week 2 of the 2024 season, when he completed 22 of 34 passes for 186 yards in the Browns' 18-13 victory over Jacksonville.
The previous six wins came when Watson was with the Houston Texans. He took a bus from Houston to Jacksonville while recovering from a broken rib and bruised lung in 2018. He also beat the Jaguars in London in 2019 with a swollen eye.
Throughout the preseason, coach Todd Monken emphasized the need to name a starter "for Jacksonville" and the challenges of playing on the road. However, Monken stressed that Watson's record did not play a role, even though the coach "felt a little bit better about it."
Watson will make his first start since Week 7 of the 2024 season against Cincinnati. He said he has mentally bounced back after struggling in his Aug. 22 preseason outing against Buffalo, when he completed 5 of 12 passes for 36 yards and an interception during the third quarter and part of the fourth. He vented after the game, saying boos from fans were "personal" and showed "disrespect" after he took the field in Cleveland for the first time in 22 months.
"I'm not worried about that. We're not worried about '24. We're not worried about last year, me not playing. We're not worried about the preseason. Right now, we've got to focus on Jacksonville," he said.
Watson said throughout training camp and the preseason that he hasn't yet showcased what he can do in Monken's offense. There were brief glimpses during the first couple of series at Chicago on Aug. 15. However, teams tend to remain vanilla during the preseason.
The Browns have a pair of rookies at wide receiver in KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston along with four new starters on the offensive line, including first-round pick Spencer Fano at left tackle.
Cleveland has second-year running back Quinshon Judkins, and Watson has shown the ability to scramble and gain yards on the ground.
"We can do a lot of different things. We have a lot of different guys that are very talented and can get the ball in their hands," Watson said. "So, I think we just want to be multiple and try to spread the ball."
Even though the Jaguars were 27th in the NFL in sacks last season, they led the league in passes defensed and were second in takeaways and interceptions.
"He's a hell of an athlete, man, a stronger lower body, breaks a lot of tackles, and he does a really great job of extending the play," Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen said of Watson. "We're going to have to have one person holding him up. Let me be the only one to hit him, though."
Monken and Watson share something else in common -- this season might be their last and best shot to prove what they've got.
The 60-year-old Monken makes his head coaching debut. Watson, who turns 31 on Monday, beat out Shedeur Sanders for the starting job, but is going into the final year of his contract.
"I've got to focus on now. If I try to look ahead and get distracted from what I need to do now, then who knows what the future might hold," Watson said. "I want to be just like Todd Monken said. He's 60; he feels like this is his shot. With me in the last year of my deal and in year 10, I feel this is my opportunity to get up there and showcase that I can still play in this league. I want to continue to play in this league. This is my opportunity to do that."