Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is facing incredible adversity heading into the 2024 NFL season.
Watson is entering his third year with the Browns, but since being acquired in a blockbuster trade with the Houston Texans in March 2022, he has played in a grand total of 12 games with the club.
He served an 11-game suspension during his debut campaign in Cleveland, and last season, he appeared in just six contests before bowing out due to a shoulder injury that required surgery.
Now, he is apparently experiencing arm soreness in training camp, which is obviously concerning.
During a recent episode of NBC Sports' Fantasy Football Happy Hour, Watson received a very interesting comparison to a former MVP candidate: Carson Wentz.
Wentz was once an elite quarterback with the Philadelphia Eagles and was making a legitimate case for an MVP award in 2017 before tearing his ACL in Week 13. After the injury, Wentz was never quite the same and is now on his fourth NFL team since ultimately departing the Eagles after 2020.
So, how does that compare with Watson?
Well, remember: Watson has two torn ACLs in his rearview mirror, as he suffered one in college and then sustained another during his rookie season. Of course, Watson rebounded from those injuries to put forth three straight Pro Bowl campaigns between 2018 and 2020, but he hasn't been good since.
The 28-year-old sat out all of 2021 due to a dispute with the Texans' front office before ultimately being traded to the Browns.
Realistically speaking, outside of some brief flashes of brilliance, Watson has not been an elite quarterback—or even a good one—in four years.
As a result, there are understandably a whole lot of questions surrounding the Clemson product heading into 2024, and while the Wentz comparison may seem out of left field, it does have some merit given how good both signal-callers once were.
