Much like last year, Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson remains a mystery factor entering the 2024 season.
After undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery last year, will he get back to his 2020 level of performance? Or will he struggle in a revamped offensive scheme?
New offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey said in his Thursday press conference he thinks Watson is excited to get back to playing.
“I think he’s a competitor, he wants to be out there with his guys and out there playing ball, and he’s looked like himself at practice from what I’ve seen on tape from him in the past, you know?” Dorsey said. “So, I think he just continues to progress and continues to kind of get back in that rhythm a little bit and I’m excited to see him out there and excited to watch him kind of fly around and be himself, you know?
“And that’s all we want from him. We just want him to go out, be himself. No more, no less. Go out and make good decisions. Everything else will take care of itself.”
Dorsey added that Watson has been “extremely hungry” and has “been great for me in terms of just taking the coaching” that he’s put out there. Some of that has to do with balancing when to extend a play by potentially putting himself in harm’s way with just moving on when a play might be dead.
“[H]e’s going to make some exceptional plays for us that no one else in this league can make and he’s going to be able to do that for us,” Dorsey said. “Balancing that with, there’s a time to throw it away and move on to the next down, you know? So, there’s definitely that balance you got to strike with guys because you don’t want to lose that aspect of what makes them special in their own way. And I think the great thing about Deshaun is he can do that outside of this just normal system, and then he can get back and work a progression and rip it to an outlet or a third progression in the read, just as equal.
“So, I think it’s just a balance you got to strike with these guys and make sure you don’t put the handcuffs on them in too many ways.”
Over the last two seasons with Cleveland, Watson has completed 59.8 percent of his passes for 2,217 yards with 14 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 12 games.