Competition for the starting quarterback job in Cleveland will not include the Browns’ highest-paid QB, Deshaun Watson.

Watson was officially placed on the physically unable to perform list as training camp gets underway in Berea, Ohio, with Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and rookies Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel vying to be the QB1 when the regular season begins Sept. 7 against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Watson was rehabbing a torn Achilles when he suffered the same injury in January. Two seasons in a row ended with injuries for Watson, who is 9-10 as a starter since being acquired from the Houston Texans for six draft picks and signing a guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract. Half of those draft picks were first-round selections.

Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry had been staunch defenders of Watson’s ability and status as the team’s starter until the offseason, when cracks in the commitment level to Watson being a centerpiece of the franchise began to appear. When principal owner Jimmy Haslam said in March that the Browns were recovering from the mistake of “thinking we had a quarterback and didn’t have one,” the door opened even more for Cleveland to move in a new direction.

Watson, who turns 30 in September, denies he’ll miss the regular season, but all signs point to Watson being unavailable deep into the 2025 schedule.

He counts nearly $36 million against the 2025 salary cap and following a number of restructures, his cap hit is $80.7 million in 2026.

Defensive tackle Mike Hall Jr. also was placed on the PUP list. Hall is recovering from a knee injury he sustained in the final game of the 2024 season against the Baltimore Ravens.

–Field Level Media