Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will miss the rest of the season after surgeons repair his injured right shoulder, the club announced on Wednesday.
Watson told team doctors he felt pain in his throwing shoulder, following Sunday’s dramatic 33-31 come-from-behind victory over the Baltimore Ravens.
An MRI revealed “a displaced fracture to the glenoid” and “it has been determined that this injury will require immediate surgical repair to avoid further structural damage,” the team said.
Watson arrived in Cleveland ahead of last season following his trade from the Houston Texans, which was prompted by a slew of sexual misconduct allegations against the star signal caller.
He missed the first 11 games of last season after the NFL and Cleveland Browns QB agreed to the penalty, officials said, for his “sexualized contact” with massage therapists.
The Browns are off to a surprising 6-3 start, riding one of the most stingy defensive units in football.
Cleveland’s defense is allowing an NFL-best 242.7 yards per game. The team’s scoring defense, 18.9 points per game, sixth best.
Watson, 28, has yet to put up the dazzling numbers in Cleveland that he posted in Houston.
In his last season leading the Texans in 2020, Watson threw for a league-high 4,823 yards in 16 games, to go along with 33 TDs and just 7 interceptions.
In his 12-game Browns career, Watson has thrown for a modest 2,217 yards, 14 touchdowns and 9 picks.
Backup Browns QB P.J. Walker has started three games this year, helping Cleveland to victories over the Indianapolis Colts and San Francisco 49ers.
