The Cleveland Browns’ biggest fears became reality on Sunday afternoon when Deshaun Watson appeared to suffer a season-ending Achilles tear. While the team has not confirmed it yet, coach Kevin Stefanski admitted, “That’s what it looks like.”
Cleveland’s offense was already scoring the fewest points in the NFL, but the hope was that the return of Nick Chubb, who made his season debut on Sunday, plus more time for their offensive line to return to health, could spark a turnaround. If that spark happens this season, it won’t come from Watson.
There’s nothing the Browns can do about Watson’s injury, but now the attention turns to whether they’ll be protected in any way, shape, or form. One way the Browns could find some relief is if the organization decided to take out an insurance policy protecting them in the event that Watson got hurt. But did the Browns do that?
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Did the Cleveland Browns take out an insurance policy on Deshaun Watson?
An insurance policy may not seem all that important for a billion-dollar franchise with money to burn. However, in this case, it would have been extremely helpful for the Browns to insure themselves against a serious Deshaun Watson injury.
As Yahoo’s NFL insider Charles Robinson notes, “at least some portion of Watson’s remaining 2024 salary is covered by an insurance policy.”
This is important because if Watson’s salary is indeed covered by injury, the Browns could roll those returns into salary cap relief in 2025. But even the insurance policy is complicated because it’s not known just how much protection the Browns sought out in case of injury. Only the Browns and their insurer would be privy to that information.
“The cap credit [in 2025] will be the reflection of the payout. Or whatever the Browns reveal — if they say anything at all. I doubt they will make that public. Most teams don’t like to talk about insurance policies.”
Yahoo Sports on Deshaun Watson
- Deshaun Watson salary (2024): $1.2 million after converting $35.8M into roster bonus on Aug. 29
The focus on insurance policies came into the spotlight after Aaron Rodgers suffered a torn Achilles last season after just four snaps with the Jets. The Jets opted not to take out any insurance against a Rodgers injury. Had they planned differently, a portion of his then-$37 million salary could have been rolled over to the 2024 salary cap, giving them more money to assemble their roster this season. In turn, the Browns could be looking at a similar situation as Watson returns in 2025, and he is expected to return.
Insider deems Deshaun Watson ‘untradeable and uncuttable’
While some Browns fans may have been ready to move on from Watson long ago, it’s just not that simple. The Browns made their bed when they signed Watson to a five-year, fully guaranteed $230 million contract. Now, it’s time to lay in it.
The Browns’ decision to restructure Watson’s contract effectively makes them stuck with their franchise QB even longer than their initial agreement. When the Browns restructured, they added a void year on the back end of the deal, which made his cap charges even higher. This essentially means the Browns are stuck with Watson heading into next season.
“If he were to be traded or released this offseason, the total amount that would be accelerated onto the Browns’ 2025 cap would be an unfathomable $172.7 million. That renders Watson virtually un-cuttable and un-tradeable, unless a team was willing to take on the remaining $92 million in guaranteed salary he’s owed in 2025 and 2026.”
Yahoo NFL insider Charles Robinson on Deshaun Watson
Related: NFL insider outlines expected Cleveland Browns QB plan for 2025 after Deshaun Watson injury
As a result, the only way the Browns can save some face, is if they already took out a sizable insurance policy protecting themselves against a Watson injury. If not, well, there’s no going back now.
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