Deshaun Watson Fantasy

The Cleveland Browns restructured quarterback Deshaun Watson's contract on Monday, creating almost $36 million in salary cap space for the 2023 season, according to a source. The cap conversion gives Cleveland plenty of room to work in free agency, which kicks off on Wednesday. Watson made his return in 2022 and started six games for the Browns after serving his suspension. He didn't really impress anything, throwing for 1,102 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions with a career-low 58.2% completion percentage. Nobody should have been expecting him to light it up after such a long layoff, but it remains to be seen if he can rebound in his second year in Cleveland in 2023.

Mar. 13th • 1:11 PM

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is open to restructuring his contract in the next week to help the team get under the 2023 salary cap and to clear space to add quality veterans in free agency or trades, according to a league source. General manager Andrew Berry mentioned at the combine last week that a restructure for Watson "could be on the table." Cleveland is more than $13.415 million over the cap and must get under by March 15. Watson carries a $54.993 million cap charge for this year and for the next three years. The Browns could also look to lower the cap charges of Myles Garrett ($29.176 million) and Amari Cooper ($23.776 million), among others. The 27-year-old Watson returned to the field in 2022 for the first time in two years and had 1,102 passing yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions in six starts.

Mar. 6th • 10:01 PM

Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry said this week that the team could restructure quarterback Deshaun Watson's contract this offseason. Watson signed a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal in 2022. If a restructure ends up happening, Cleveland would likely convert a portion of his $46 million base salary in 2023 into a signing bonus to reduce his salary cap hit, according to a person briefed on the matter who requested anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. His cap hit is $54.993 million for each season from 2023 to 2026. Multiple restructures could be in Watson's future. After not playing for two years, Watson threw for 1,102 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions in six games for the Browns in 2022. Rust was certainly a factor, so fantasy managers will be hoping he can pay off as a QB1 value pick in his first full season in Cleveland.

Mar. 3rd • 9:29 PM