Former Clemson Tigers QB Gets Chance at Redemption With Cleveland Browns

After a back-and-forth quarterback battle over the past few weeks, Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken has named the starter.

On Monday morning, it was announced that former Clemson signal caller Deshaun Watson will begin the 2026-27 NFL season as the starter for the AFC North team, with Shedeur Sanders backing him up.

Now, Week 1 will feature a battle of former Tigers at quarterback, as the Browns face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who boast fellow National Championship-winning signal caller Trevor Lawrence.

Deshaun Watson has been named the starting quarterback

📰: https://t.co/xBBsEbXOb5 pic.twitter.com/hrL3C6UUPK
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) August 24, 2026

As most fans know, the Gainesville, Georgia, native is one of the best, if not the best, players to ever come out of the Clemson Football program.

Coming out of the 2014 class, the top dual-threat prospect didn't see much playing time as a true freshman, primarily playing behind Cole Stoudt.

Things changed quickly during his sophomore campaign, though, as he broke out for over 5,000 all-purpose yards and 47 touchdowns, leading the Tigers to their first National Championship appearance since 1981. They came up short against Alabama in the title game, but Watson still finished as a Heisman finalist and a consensus All-American.

As a junior in 2016, Watson didn't slow down, putting up career-high passing numbers of 4,593 yards and 41 touchdowns, to go along with 629 yards and nine scores on the ground. Along the way, he earned Second-team All-American honors and finished as Heisman runner-up, then capped it off by beating the Crimson Tide in a National Championship rematch, 35-31.

After only spending two seasons as the full-time starter, the 6-foot-3 signal caller proved just how impactful he was in the short period of time, ending his Clemson career with the second-most passing yards, second-most passing touchdowns and fourth-most completions in program history.

Heading into the 2017 NFL Draft, Watson was looked at as one of the best quarterbacks in his respective class, which proved to be true as he was selected by the Houston Texans with the 12th overall pick, just behind Patrick Mahomes at No. 10.

Watson hit the ground running with the Texans to start his rookie year, throwing for nearly 20 touchdowns through his first six starts before tearing his ACL, which forced him to miss the final nine games of his debut season.

He bounced back effortlessly over the next three years, as he completed nearly 69% of his passes for 12,840 yards, 85 touchdowns and 28 interceptions in addition to over 1,400 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. In that span, he was named a three-time consecutive Pro Bowler and the 2020 NFL passing yards leader.

Following the 2020 season, though, Watson requested a trade out of Houston due to multiple disagreements with the front office. The Texans chose not to entertain any offers from teams, which led to a holdout by both parties; that was until over two dozen women hit him with sexual harassment allegations.

Considering the situation, he was ruled out of the entire 2021 season due to "non-injury reasons/personal matter."

Following the conclusion of the season, Watson and a sixth-round pick were traded to the Browns for three firsts, one third and two fourths. Additionally, as part of the trade, Cleveland signed the 27-year-old (at the time) to a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal — the largest guaranteed contract at the time.

Since then, Watson has endured the worst stretch of his football career, playing in just 19 games over the past three seasons while totaling 3,365 passing yards, 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Heading into 2026, he now has the chance to change that narrative, as he enters the season fully healthy with a new head coach and multiple weapons at his disposal, including wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, second-year running back Quinshon Judkins, second-year tight end Harold Fannin Jr., and rookie wideout duo K.C. Concepcion and Denzel Boston.

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