It’s been more than three-and-a-half years since the Browns pulled off a franchise-defining move for the biggest quarterback name on the market, sending three first-round picks (and more) to the Texans for Deshaun Watson, finally delivering what was expected to be the No. 1 quarterback the team had not had since Bernie Kosar or thereabouts. More significant than the draft capital was the $230 million fully guaranteed contract the Browns gave him.
We know what happened from there, of course–the embarrassment of Watson’s legal issues as well as his inability to stay healthy, playing just 19 games in the last four years., and the team’s underwhelming 9-10 record when Watson has started. He is currently recovering from two Achilles tendon injuries.
While the bulk of the Browns roster is actually pretty good–it’s the No. 1 defense in the league, according to Pro Football Focus–the quarterback problem has been relentless. And one of the guys who was supposed to help fix that with out-of-the-box thinking, Paul DePodesta, has now bolted to go back to baseball, taking over the Colorado Rockies.
Browns Lose DePodesta to a Baseball Return
DePodesta’s departure from the Browns was widely met with eye-rolls, since he had been on board going back to 2016. In all that time, it was not exactly clear what his role was. His title, chief strategy officer, was notably vague.
Still, he is now among the mountains in Denver and back in baseball, where he first made his name as one of A’s general manager Bill Beane’s top “Moneyball” lieutenants. But the Watson trade is still firmly attached to his tenure in Cleveland, and DePodesta was asked about it by Denver media.
GettyPaul DePodesta Cleveland Browns Chief Strategy Officer.
Browns Blame ‘Collective’ for Deshaun Watson Mess
Here’s DePodesta, from the Denver Post: “Here’s what I would say, and I truly believe this. I believe that most of the decisions, especially the big ones like that, are organizational decisions, right? I’m not a believer in the ‘King Scout’ situation where there is one guy who makes every call. …
“The jobs are too complex, the decisions are too hard. They impact too many different things. So I always think these sort of collective decisions, it can be hard to get unanimous (opinions) on those types of things. Everyone who was a part of that? We all own that. We just do, that’s part of the deal.”
Issues Go Beyond Deshaun Watson
In other words, as DePodesta sees it, everyone at the top of the Browns org chart deserves blame for the Watson move.
Making blame a collective issue is, of course, a good way to ensure that the Deshaun Watson disaster does not stick to any one person. But the fact is, it goes beyond simply bringing in Watson.
The handling of former No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield, now a Pro Bowler in Tampa Bay, was a major mistake on the Browns’ part, and letting him leave without a succession plan in place was an obvious error. And even as Watson has struggled, the Browns have done little to develop even a mediocre player to guide the offense.
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