Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson didn’t practice Wednesday, saying his status for this week is “up in the air,” the latest twist in the soap-opera style saga of the signal-caller’s injured shoulder.
“It just depends on the process of the medical stuff and the treatment and the rehab that we’re doing day to day. It’s up in the air for sure,” Watson told reporters.
This after dueling weekend reports that said Watson either could return this week to play against the Indianapolis Colts or could miss more than a month with a deep contusion to his rotator cuff. Head coach Kevin Stefanski said Monday the team was optimistic that Watson would practice this week.
But then Watson let fly Wednesday that an MRI revealed a “microtear” in the rotator cuff muscle.
“We just gotta continue to take it day-to-day,” Watson said. “I’m not gonna put the team in jeopardy if I can’t do certain things that is gonna allow us to be handicapped in certain situations. That’s the reason why I haven’t been able to step on the field.
“It’s a tricky deal,” he said. “You gotta kind of take that baseball approach and talk to some people that deals with rotator cuffs more often.”
Watson first sustained the injury in Week 3 vs. Tennessee on Sept. 24, he said. Then, Watson insisted that he would play in Week 4 against Baltimore before a “collective decision,” according to the team, sidelined him for that game. Amid all of that, Stefanski said Watson had been medically cleared to play.
The Browns then had a bye in Week 5.
Last Sunday, PJ Walker started and led Cleveland to a win over previously unbeaten San Francisco. Walker would get the start in Indianapolis if Watson can’t play.
“It could be tomorrow, it could be Sunday, it could be two weeks from now. I’m not even sure,” Watson said. “I can’t put a timeline on anything right now.”
Watson, 28, has thrown for 678 yards and four touchdowns against two interceptions in three games this season, getting sacked 12 times.
–Field Level Media