Deshaun Watson, new wife will be Browns worst nightmare with $131M leverage

The Browns' "big swing and miss" is about to be their biggest nightmare.

Lost in the hoopla of Cleveland Browns fans desperately hoping Shedeur Sanders can prove all the haters wrong in the NFL's most bloated quarterbacks room alongside Super Bowl-winning veteran Joe Flacco, on his second stint with the franchise after leading them to the playoffs last time, Kenny Pickett, the Super Bowl-winning backup of the Philadelphia Eagles, and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel, who probably only his family is rooting for at this point, is the biggest storm cloud looming over all of it.

Deshaun Watson.

If the Browns and the NFL think Watson will go quietly into the night, they haven't been following his Sports Illustrated Swimsuit-aspiring new wife Jilly Anais, who is very much making it clear that the three-time Pro Bowler is not going anywhere.

And now we know the couple has $131-million leverage heading into the season with two years remaining on his five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract.

Here's why.

Anais and Watson love being filthy rich

Jilly Anais, Deshaun Watson, NFL WAG — IMAGO / MediaPunch

If you are willing to suffer by following both of them on social media, the 29-year-old Clemson hero and national champion and his model and social influencer wife, also 29, love to flex their lifestyles of the rich and fabulous on nearly a daily basis ever since the two got engaged in mid-March, getting married in early July.

Anais, within the past 24 hours of this story, had this Instagram post that flexed several private planes, their massive honeymoon yacht in the French Riviera, her ridiculous engagement ring rumored to be $2.5 million, and the list goes on and on from there.

Do you think for one second she's going to be satisfied with only two more years of this?

Expect Watson to threaten the $131 million nuclear-option button

Both Watson and his beautiful wife often post about putting in the work at the gym, even on their superyachts. "Work comes first," Anais wrote during their honeymoon as the drone footage draws out to show off the enormous boat.

Watson, similarly, often posts his workouts and training regimen, giving updates on his Achilles recovery, which he ruptured for the second time in January, with the Browns saying at the time, "recovery time and return to play status is uncertain, and he will likely miss significant time during the 2025 season."

Watson holds all the leverage. As first reported by Pro Football Talk, if the former Houston Texans star gets cleared to play, the Browns would have to put him back on the 53-man roster or release him. If they released him, that would incur a 2026 cap hit of $131 million.

Watson plans to play again

Only six days ago, Watson posted an Instagram Reels video showing himself walking on a treadmill, and in early June saying in another one of his posts, “Obviously I don’t wanna be hurt, but at the same time, using this moment to really focus on the details that I wouldn’t focus on if I was rushing back."

Deshaun Watson shared that he’s been putting in long hours daily, fully locked in on rehab and intense training as he works his way back.pic.twitter.com/VNyBKKWABj
— BrownsNation.com (@BrownsNationcom) June 5, 2025

Watson still believes he's a QB1 in the NFL, and now his wife has a thirst for the one-percent lifestyle for both of them.

Bottom line, the Browns are screwed.

Jilly Anais, NFL WAGs, Deshaun Watson — Jilly Anais walks the runway during the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Runway Show During Miami Swim Week. | IMAGO / Cover-Images

— Enjoy free dish of rich and fabulous players with The Athlete Lifestyle on SI —

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