The end appeared imminent.
After Sunday, the question for the Browns became: Can this be the start of something good?
Quarterback Deshaun Watson’s starting job was on the line heading into the matchup with Tampa Bay. Another poor performance after a clunker in the opening loss to the Jaguars, and he was likely to be benched in favor of Shedeur Sanders for the home opener this week against the Carolina Panthers.
Watson quieted that talk, at least temporarily, with a 23-19 win on the road over the Buccaneers.
Analysis: Same old Browns? Todd Monken’s ‘F*** that’ message comes through loud and clear
He gave coach Todd Monken reason to believe, and hope the uncertainty at the position evaporates with consistent play.
“I’m happy for Deshaun, the way he’s played, and I expect continued improvement,” he said Monday. “There’s a lot of football left in him. He just hasn’t played in awhile, and learning our system and trying to get him consistent with his drops and his reads is part of the process.
“I see him as a young player. I know people don’t want to see it that way and I haven’t been here, but I see him as still a very young player that is going to continue to grow.”
Browns coach Todd Monken said he believes there’s a lot of football left in Deshaun Watson.
And “of course” he would like a QB to solidify himself so he isn’t asked who’s the starter every week. pic.twitter.com/AzVTCJudsD— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) September 21, 2026
https://platform.x.com/widgets.js
Watson, 31, went 24-for-30 (80 percent) for 238 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions, two sacks and a stellar 121.9 passer rating. He led the Browns (1-1) back from a 16-6 third-quarter deficit, completing the comeback with a 12-play, 68-yard touchdown drive in the fourth.
Watson said he didn’t feel like his back was against the wall. Regardless, he played one of his best games in five years with the Browns when he needed it the most. His career in Cleveland may have been over if he had flopped in the matchup with Baker Mayfield.
Watson wasn’t worried about the big picture.
“I’m just happy we got the win, for real,” he told reporters after the game.
The Browns wouldn’t have won without him.
“He was our offensive player of the game,” Monken said. “He made a number of plays with his legs, played with confidence. He let it rip. You could see the difference from Week 1 to Week 2, and I think we’re just going to continue to grow together.”
Browns frustrate Baker Mayfield, keep him from win and revenge
Watson, whose start in the opener came 693 days after his previous regular-season appearance, made good decisions, was efficient, mixed in a couple of big-time throws and used his legs to pick up a pair of critical first downs. He was at his best late, as the Browns converted four third downs on the winning drive after going 2-for-17 on third down to start the season.
The possession began at the Cleveland 32-yard line with 9:52 left. After a pair of 3-yard gains, Watson scrambled for 6 on third-and-4. The next third down was a 9-yard pass to rookie receiver Denzel Boston on an out. Then came the play of the drive.
On third-and-1 at Tampa’s 31, Watson faked a handoff to Raheim Sanders and faced immediate pressure from outside linebacker Yaya Diaby. Watson escaped and quickly dumped a short pass to tight end Harold Fannin Jr. with defensive lineman Calijah Kancey closing in. Fannin picked up 6 yards.
“It has to be a weapon for him and us to use his legs,” Monken said of Watson, who missed all of 2025 after his Achilles tendon ruptured twice. “He is athletic, he has a good feel for that, and certainly he’s asked for it. He said, ‘Don’t be afraid to use my legs.’ And so that’s been a big part the first couple of weeks.”
Watson seems to have gotten past the hesitancy in trusting his body after also sustaining a broken shoulder bone in 2023.
“Every week I’m getting more confident and more comfortable with myself,” he said. “Like I told Monk and I told the team, I feel good. I’m healthy. I trust the work that I put in these last two years and if you’ve got to put the ball in my hands, I’m ready for it. So whatever we’ve got to do to make the team win and keep drives moving, I’m ready for it.”
The final conversion was the winning touchdown, as on third-and-2 tight end Blake Whiteheart came wide open underneath for a 17-yard catch and run.
“Just making plays,” Watson said of the second half. “Telling Monk at halftime just to trust me with the ball in my hands and let me just go out there and just operate, and let him just scheme up, call the plays and I’m going to trust his mindset and let’s go execute.”
Watson was 17-for-21 for 183 yards and two touchdowns after halftime, leading a field goal and two touchdown drives.
“Just got the ball out of our hands,” Monken said. “Deshaun did a good job of distributing the ball. And in the first half we had lost-yardage plays and penalties. We had holding calls and we didn’t convert when we had opportunities and some of that’s players and some of it’s coaching.”
The performance and win were quite a turnaround from the 34-10 Week 1 loss to the Jaguars. Monken mentioned scuffles in practice during the week between games, and Watson said he and Monken went “head-to-head a couple times.”
“You felt the energy. Guys want to win. Guys passionate,” Watson said. “So it’s going to be like that, especially when you have brothers in locker room that is all together. It was all good. It’s all love, man. So that’s what you got to do to sometimes pull out a win like this.”
He agrees with Monken that they will continue to grow together.
“The more we talk, the more we’re around each other, the more we go through certain situations, we’re going to build that,” Watson said of their relationship. “That’s part of this game and this league. You’re going to have some ups and downs. You’re going to go back and forth, you’re going to agree to disagree. But at the end of the day, we love each other. We got respect for each other and that’s what matters.”
