The Cleveland Browns will unfortunately head into a major early-season divisional matchup against the Baltimore Ravens without their starting quarterback.
Heading into Week 4 of the 2023 NFL season, there is a three-way tie for first place in the AFC North. That tie will fall to at least two when the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens break things up in a 1 PM ET matchup on CBS.
The game was set to be one of the best of the week, however, the Ravens’ chances of a win increased in a major way on Sunday morning with some injury news on the Browns starting QB. After suffering a shoulder injury last week against the Tennessee Titans, Deshaun Watson was questionable all week. After going through warmups before the afternoon clash, it became clear the QB had still not recovered and was officially ruled out of the matchup.
- Deshaun Watson stats (2023): 678 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT, 87.8 passer rating
Dorian Thompson-Robinson will start for Cleveland Browns in Week 4
In his place will be rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson, a player Cleveland used a fifth-round pick on in April. “I’m ready for it. Very confident in my preparation for the week,” Thompson-Robinson told ESPN on Friday when he was asked about the possibility of getting his first NFL start today against Baltimore.
The news is a big blow to the Browns since Watson had his best game in a Cleveland uniform in Week 3 when he posted 289 yards and two touchdowns in their 27-3 victory over the Titans. However, Thompson-Robinson won’t have a very high bar to reach in comparison to Watson.
After making a blockbuster deal in the spring of 2022 for the former Houston Texans star quarterback, the Browns have yet to see the player who earned Pro Bowl honors in three of his first four seasons in the league.
After missing all of the 2021 season and the first 11 games last year, Deshaun Watson has struggled to recapture his elite form and his steep decline in many key categories has made the massive five-year, $230 million guaranteed deal they gave him after the trade quickly look like one of the worst contracts in the NFL.