We are now just a few days away from the return of Cleveland Browns football as they get set to open their season against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon. And ahead of the start of the regular season, The Ringer’s Steven Ruiz has released his quarterback rankings. To say he is not a fan of Deshaun Watson is an understatement, ranking him as the 21st-best quarterback in the league.
In Watson’s blurb, here is what Ruiz had to say about the Cleveland quarterback:
Buy Browns Tickets“It’s not a shock that Watson was rusty last season after sitting out for nearly two years and then serving an 11-game suspension following the NFL’s investigation into multiple accounts of sexual misconduct. At one time, Watson was widely viewed as a top-five quarterback thanks to a combination of accuracy and creativity. He can make plays in or out of the pocket and be used on designed runs. But whether that skill set is the same now remains to be seen.”
And in all fairness to Ruiz, he is not particularly wrong. The Browns have done all they could have done this offseason to overhaul their roster, but much of their 2023 season will fall onto the shoulders of Watson. And after a rough six-game sample size a year ago after his suspension, Watson will have to go out and prove he has returned to form first before people will believe he is once again a top-10 quarterback in the NFL.
As the Bengals travel up I-71 this weekend to Cleveland, Watson has a heck of a first opportunity to prove it on Sunday.
