Deshaun Watson Made Call on Shoulder Ahead of Ravens Game

Monday, Kevin Stefanski told reporters that Deshaun Watson made the final decision on his shoulder ahead of the Cleveland Browns game against the Baltimore Ravens.

In his press availability on Monday, Cleveland Browns head coach said that Deshaun Watson was cleared by doctors to be able to play against the Baltimore Ravens. Watson was the one who made the determination he couldn't go, believing he couldn't operate at the level necessary, so the Browns went with Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

#Browns HC Kevin Stefanski says Deshaun Watson was medically cleared to play, but it was Deshaun's call: "He knows his body. He's played through pain before. It was not about pain tolerance." Says Watson felt he couldn't have his full effect with injury

— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) October 2, 2023

Stefanski said the same thing after the game, but with less context. This could result in plenty criticizing Watson for not playing or Stefanski for allowing him to make that call. It's important to note that while being cleared by doctors, that only means that Watson isn't likely to do more damage to his shoulder by playing or throwing.

That doesn't mean that the mechanism in his shoulder would allow him to play at the level necessary to succeed in the game. This is where some clarity on the situation would help.

To this point, the Browns have only been willing to acknowledge that it's a shoulder injury, a contusion. However, during the broadcast of the game, there was reporting from the CBS crew that there's fluid in his shoulder around the rotator cuff. If accurate, that would seemingly limit his movement in the shoulder and by extension, his ability to throw.

Watson only made a few warm up throws in warmups before determining his shoulder wasn't right.

The Browns are giving Watson the full bye week to rest his shoulder. Normally, not providing many details on injuries is the way to go, but the lack of clarity with what Watson is actually dealing with allows speculation and inferences that may not be fair to the situation. 

As it stands, the Browns are hoping that Watson's shoulder will be healthy coming out of the bye as the team gets ready to host the San Francisco 49ers. 

Watson will likely be the first to say that by not playing against the Ravens, it only ups the ante of him playing well both coming out of the bye but over the course of the season.