Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is taking on an additional role this offseason as he recovers from a re-aggravated Achilles injury: mentoring QBs.<\/p>\n
Watson, expected to miss much, if not all, of the 2025 season, is said to be a source of support<\/a> to the four quarterbacks vying for the starting job<\/a>, including Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, whom the former first-round pick has taken \u201cunder his wing,\u201d according to Cleveland.com\u2019s Mary Kay Cabot.<\/p>\n \u201cWatson has been an awesome teammate inside the quarterback room and meeting rooms, and has been a great cheerleader for the four quarterbacks vying for the starting job,\u201d Cabot reported Sunday, citing sources.<\/p>\n Deshaun Watson during Browns minicamp in June 2025. Ken Blaze-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Shedeur Sanders is preparing for his rookie NFL season with the Browns. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201c\u2026 He\u2019s been especially helpful to the rookies in Gabriel and Sanders, who are working overtime to remain in the starting mix.\u201d<\/p>\n In the case of Sanders, the 23-year-old son of NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, Watson, 29, is said to be aiding the former Buffaloes quarterback \u201ccome up the learning curve quickly, and it\u2019s been working,\u201d Cabot reported.<\/p>\n Deion, 57, vocally supported Watson in October 2024 in the wake of his initial Achilles injury, which drew some cheers<\/a> from the Cleveland faithful. Watson \u201cis only too happy to repay the favor\u201d to Deion by mentoring his son, per the report.<\/p>\n Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in October 2024. Diamond Images\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Watson\u2019s future in Cleveland has been much of a question mark<\/a> this offseason after he tore his Achilles again and underwent surgery in January.<\/p>\n Two months later, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam dubbed the $230 million Watson experiment<\/a> a failure, stating at the NFL owners meetings how the club \u201ctook a big swing and miss\u201d with the former Texans quarterback.<\/p>\n Joe Flacco (15) and Shedeur Sanders (12) during Browns minicamp in June 2025. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n The Browns have a four-man QB competition that includes Joe Flacco (15), Shedeur Sanders (12), Kenny Pickett (8) and Dillon Gabriel (5). Ken Blaze-Imagn Images<\/p>\n The Browns originally traded for Watson in March 2022 and subsequently signed him to a five-year, $230 million guaranteed contract.<\/p>\n He was suspended<\/a> for the first 11 games of his inaugural season in Cleveland in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations made by massage therapists and was fined $5 million.<\/p>\n The Browns open the season against the Bengals. Getty Images<\/p>\n Watson only appeared in 13 regular-season games across the 2023 and 2024 seasons due to injury.<\/p>\n With Watson\u2019s availability in question for the upcoming season, the Browns landed Eagles backup quarterback Kenny Pickett<\/a> in a March trade, before signing Flacco in April<\/a>.<\/p>\n