Browns believe Watson suffered torn Achilles

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson was carted off the field after suffering an Achilles injury in the club's Week 7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski said postgame that he believes Watson sustained a season-ending Achilles tear, but the team is still waiting for more tests, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The 29-year-old sustained the injury in the second quarter when he attempted to push off his foot to run. The Browns ruled Watson out shortly after and replaced him with Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Jameis Winston, who was listed as the emergency quarterback, replaced Thompson-Robinson in the fourth quarter after the second-year quarterback sustained a finger injury.

Watson finished the contest completing 15 of 17 passes for 128 yards.

The Clemson product has struggled this season, posting a 1-5 record in six starts heading into Sunday while throwing for 1,020 yards with five touchdowns and three interceptions. Out of 31 quarterbacks who've played 120 snaps this season, Watson ranks 31st in EPA/play and success rate, per Ben Baldwin's database.

Cleveland signed Watson to a five-year, $230-million fully guaranteed contract after acquiring him in a trade with the Houston Texans in 2022. The NFL suspended him for the first 11 games of that season for violating its personal conduct policy after investigating his involvement in numerous allegations of sexual misconduct and assault.

Watson has $72-plus million cap hits in 2025 and 2026 after the Browns restructured his contract and pushed money into future years, according to Over The Cap.