$131M nuclear Browns QB Deshaun Watson looks ready to return this season

Still being ignored in the four-way Browns quarterback competition, with Joe Flacco the Week 1 starter as Shedeur Sanders fans pout, Watson looms large.

Jun 12, 2025; Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson works out during minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Deshaun Watson, and his new wife, very much act like he's still a QB1 in the NFL.

The Cleveland Browns do not.

As head coach Kevin Stefanski tries to quell any quarterback controversy by naming Joe Flacco the Week 1 starter for the home opener against their in-state AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals, much to the chagrin of Shedeur Sanders fans, the 29-year-old three-time Pro Bowler is giving constant updates on his Instagram account.

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Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson goes down with a non-contact injury to his lower leg in the second quarter of the NFL Week 7 game between the Cleveland Browns and the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field on Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024. | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While little snippets of health should never be overblown, it sure looks like the former Clemson Tigers legend and national champion wants to return this season. And he has all the incentive to get a clean bill of health to force the Browns hand.

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Watson is able to fully plant now when he goes back to throw from the pocket. | Deshaun Watson/Instagram

Using his go-to "4OVE" motto, he wrote his tagline, "Focus only on victories everyday... More GLORY" with a prayers emoji. Notice too this is at the Browns' practice facility.

Deshaun Watson is moving effortlessly in the pocket in his latest Instagram Stories update. | Deshaun Watson/Instagram

Browns owner Jimmy Haslam didn't do the franchise any favors, admitting Watson was a "big swing and miss" in the offseason.

Too bad for Haslam, Stefanski, and general manager Andrew Berry, Watson and his newlywed wife, aspiring Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model Jilly Anais, are living the one percent lifestyle, so he'll do everything in his power to see that full $230 million guaranteed while looking to compete for a starting job somewhere else in the NFL.

Jilly Anais/Instagram

As Pro Football Talk first reported, if Watson can get a clean bill of health after after rupturing his Achilles twice, the Browns have to put him back on the active roster or release him, which would entail still paying him the remainder of his $230 million and hit the club with a whopping $131 million cap hit for 2026.

WIth each new Watson update, it's looking more and more likely that we're headed to that nuclear option scenario.

So while the Browns' brain trust and their fans debate the four quarterbacks currently vying for QB1, their $230 million mistake looms large.

Oct 13, 2024; Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson greet each other after the game at Lincoln Financial Field. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

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