Abnormal Offseason Has Deshaun Watson Feeling More Prepared For Browns Season

The Cleveland Browns QB is ready to make his long-awaited return to the field after months of rehabbing a fractured glenoid in his throwing shoulder

Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson looks to throw a pass during minicamp, Tuesday, June 11, 2024, in Berea. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

Deshaun Watson did something this offseason he hasn't had to do in quite some time. He went back to the fundamentals – a process that perhaps serves as a silver-lining to the more than nine months of rehab from a fractured glenoid in his throwing shoulder.

"We went back to the basics," Watson said about his abnormal offseason. "Started from scratch. The injury definitely helped just because, you know, I had to start over; throwing motion, mechanics, taking care of my body, eating right, getting with Billy, getting with Doctor Rob, Quincy (Avery) all those guys, and just focusing on, ‘okay, what do I need to do to get back to that elite level and feeling good each and every week?’"

That soft reboot has Watson and those close to him believing he's more prepared for the upcoming NFL season with the Cleveland Browns, then he's been in quite some time. Avery, his personal coach, said as much on the Maggie and Perloff show last week. Those are sentiments Watson himself co-co-signed in the days leading up to a Week 1 showdown with the Cowboys.

gotta get better one week at a time@deshaunwatson | #DawgPound pic.twitter.com/4iwT01p2Yx

— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 4, 2024

"We sat down together, we put out a plan and we followed that plan and that process," said Watson. "And I feel really, really well, I feel very explosive, locked in on my tasks, on the game, endurance, everything. So, I’m excited to go out there and show what I got on Sunday and with all the hard work that I’ve put in. I definitely agree with him."

For Watson to be sitting in front of a microphone fully-healed and ready to go for Week 1 took a village. Avery was part of that, but so was the the Browns team doctors and training staff, as well as Los Angeles based surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who conducted the procedure. Together all parties mapped out a plan that saw Watson steadily ramp things up from the spring to now.

It started with simply throwing the ball back in March. During the Browns OTAs in May he would throw every other day at practice, skipping 11-on-11 drills. By training camp he was fully cleared for contact. Now, he'll start against the Cowboys on Sunday and put his surgically repaired shoulder to the test. The entire process could have gone much differently.

“When we first had the surgery back in November, no one knew exactly where it was going to lead to," Watson said. "It could have been now as we sit here today, or it could have been, you know, a whole year, which would have been in November. So it was very broad, but I challenged myself to get back to this moment right now, and I want to make every throw in the spring. And I did that."

#Browns have a new play-by-play voice after Jim Donovan announced his retirement last week: https://t.co/miS5UZWIGs

— 𝚂𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚛 𝙶𝚎𝚛𝚖𝚊𝚗 (@Spencito_) September 5, 2024

Without taking and preseason reps over the last month there is some level of uncertainty as to what Watson will look like in his long-awaited return to the field. A new-look offense, built for the former Texans signal caller bring plenty of mystery as well. The most important thing is that Watson says feels great.

"The emotions is super high just like everyone else," said Watson. "Just getting back for the first game, the start of the season, getting out there and just letting all the hard work that you put in, in the off season show on the field. And I think just to be back in the locker room, just be prepping again is one of my biggest wins this offseason, just to be able to make it back to week one. And be in the position I am to go out there and compete Sunday to help this team win.”