00:00There was an article that came out yesterday, and it seems to be, if you like the guy, it seems
00:06to be completely asinine.
00:10Is it not?
00:12If you like Deshaun Watson, would it or would it not feel like this is completely asinine?
00:20So are you referring to the teammates of Deshaun Watson?
00:23If you were a fan, it doesn't matter.
00:25If you were a fan, whatever it may be, it would feel silly.
00:28Yeah, what percentage of the fan base is actually a Deshaun Watson fan?
00:32Honestly, 5%.
00:33Is it even that high?
00:36It's probably a little higher.
00:38Okay.
00:39We talk to people all over.
00:40Will you see Watson jerseys in the crowd on Sunday?
00:44I think that's more a question for tomorrow or Friday.
00:49Garrett Pottle.
00:51Pottle?
00:51Pottle?
00:53Paddling?
00:54He wrote an article for CBS Sports.
00:57I'm not ripping him for his name.
00:58We've mentioned him before.
01:00It says, Browns Deshaun Watson led win over Bucs was the worst thing for Cleveland in 2026.
01:06Watson's victory robs the Browns of seeing what they have in their young quarterbacks before a QB decision in 2027.
01:14Goes over the history.
01:16There's a lot here.
01:16There's a lot of backstory there that you already know.
01:19230 million guaranteed.
01:21Allegations.
01:22Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
01:23Blah, blah, blah, blah.
01:25We've only talked about it every day for four years.
01:28He says, a get-right win against a struggling Mayfield who has 17 turnovers in his last 13 games.
01:34Nice little shot of Baker Mayfield there.
01:36Get him in.
01:37Doesn't mean Cleveland was vindicated for starting the season with Watson or will be by continuing to stick by him
01:42as their starting quarterback.
01:44Just days ago, Monkey was having to defend his decision to start Watson in week two by saying the players
01:48in his locker room didn't have a choice as to who would be the starting quarterback between Watson and 2025
01:54fifth-round pick Shador Sanders.
01:56That's because Watson has been profiled as one of the NFL's bottom two quarterbacks during his Browns tenure based on
02:04multiple efficiency stats, which he goes into.
02:08Says there's a running clock for Cleveland in their time with Watson.
02:11It'll hit zero on March 11th, 4 p.m.
02:14And basically says, every game started by Watson is a waste.
02:18Okay.
02:19Which is every argument that was made when the quarterback competition was open.
02:23We both made that argument.
02:24God, Zach Jackson is making that in his sleep.
02:27His wife goes, what were you dreaming about last night?
02:30I heard a lot of, what are we wasting time with Deshaun Watson?
02:33But yes, everybody has said that.
02:35Let me go back, though.
02:36Because we can't be, I know we love to do narrative talk and straw man talk and all this stuff.
02:40You remember what we said, yeah, I wanted Shador Sanders to start, but I said, you've got to give away
02:46to Todd Munkin.
02:47And there's several reasons why, and I highlighted those, why, if you're only focused on the team that you have,
02:53why you would start Deshaun Watson.
02:55We had to admit that.
02:56So here's where I think a lot of this has already been debunked.
03:01Because what did we see in that game?
03:05We saw the top four pass catchers were all first or second year players.
03:10Right?
03:11Yeah.
03:11That's important.
03:13So you saw them get to go on the road.
03:16They were massive underdogs.
03:18Everybody there, it seemed like even the Browns fans that were going to that game, were still wearing Baker stuff.
03:23So, you know, I'm not going to say Tampa's a hostile environment.
03:26But they dealt with adversity there.
03:29Then they dealt with having to come back on the field.
03:31Now, not the offense, but they came back on the field after a two-hour rain delay.
03:35And how did they feel about that?
03:36Were you going to get their best foot forward?
03:38And you got to see Todd Munkin secure his first win as a head coach after 40 years coaching football.
03:44You finally got to see that.
03:46And to just say that this was a waste of time, I think that's already been debunked.
03:52I think that experience cannot possibly be referred to watching Denzel Boston flourish in that way.
03:59And seeing all the different ways that maybe even the line was coming together that you didn't see.
04:05We've seen his whole career, Deshaun Watson, has also hurt the offensive line.
04:10And he didn't do that in this game.
04:12And so you saw an actual plan come to fruition.
04:15Things you worked on all week.
04:17You know for a fact.
04:19That pass to the tight end, that spider play, whatever you want to call it.
04:22That was something they worked on all week.
04:24To see that come to fruition on a Sunday on the road for a go-ahead and eventual game-winning
04:30score.
04:30Like, guys, that's not a waste of time.
04:34That's something that the team can use as a jumping-off point.
04:38So this is my issue with it.
04:40Because if you listen closely to the show, I hope you've noticed something.
04:47I really do.
04:48If you spend four hours with you, thank you.
04:52With us, thank you.
04:53And I hope you've noticed something here.
04:56I know Lima has called me the David Koresh to the Shador fans.
05:01And you guys have made your memes.
05:03I'm a Jim Jones to the Shador fans.
05:05I'm a Marshall Applewhite to the Shador fans.
05:08I'm a Charles Manson to the...
05:11Okay, we got it.
05:14If you've noticed, my conversation has changed.
05:17My voice has changed since the miles trade.
05:20I think Lima's noticed.
05:22I know Owen's noticed.
05:23Because he's brought it up with me before.
05:25John is too busy.
05:26He's been swimming ever since Joey left to go be a wide receivers coach at Kenyon.
05:31Which I was watching them against JCU the other day.
05:33Because I'm a psycho.
05:36Anyway, ever since they traded miles, I have not sat there and regaled you with tales of
05:43we need to see what we need to see in Shador.
05:45When they traded miles, I raised the white flag and I said, that's it for this season.
05:51They don't think anything of these QBs.
05:53That's going to ruffle a lot of feathers.
05:55I don't care.
05:56Some of them are bots anyway.
05:57I'm sure they'll get upset.
05:58Whatever.
06:02When you trade away the best player on defense in the league, you tell everybody what you think.
06:08It sends a message without saying it.
06:10Oh, they got Verspeck.
06:12They got this.
06:12Yeah, you can whatever you got to tell yourself to go to sleep at night.
06:15You know the truth.
06:17When they did that, that's when it stopped.
06:19I just wanted people to be able to pile up the season.
06:22Listen, you'll be able to go through the year and get us to next April.
06:29When you trade miles, Garrett, yeah, we got Jared Verspeck.
06:32He'll be better.
06:34I guarantee you.
06:35Right?
06:36I'll put that line out there.
06:38But he's a leader.
06:39You need that type of leadership.
06:40You need a sheriff because things are going to get tough.
06:42All right?
06:43You're not a very deep football team.
06:44I'm glad we won on Sunday.
06:46You're not very deep.
06:47You're going to have injuries.
06:47We're going to have problems.
06:48Hell, that's the reason you told me not to cool my jets about Jerry Judah.
06:52Maybe they can.
06:52One of these guys is going to go down.
06:53All of a sudden, that's going to free up Jerry Judah.
06:55I go, well, they told everybody, if we're saying this about quarterbacks,
06:58they told everybody what they think about Jerry Judah
06:59when they draft two guys in the first two rounds to be wide receivers.
07:04When they traded miles, Garrett, though, my conversation went from,
07:09we need to see what we have in Shador before we go there,
07:13to I just want the fans to be happy or curious.
07:16You're not happy, and you're not curious with the other guy.
07:19It's just that plain and simple.
07:20There were people who were openly upset, not even the Baker First fans.
07:25There were people who are considering themselves Browns fans
07:28who were openly upset that he left the door open at all
07:32to come back and play on Sunday against Carolina.
07:35They saw this as a funeral, and somehow the body got up out of the casket
07:43and looked at everybody.
07:46And now we got to go with Deshaun Watson on Sunday, and I'm fearful.
07:49I'm fearful he's going to go out there and suck up the room in the first quarter,
07:52and it's all going to come to fruition.
07:55But that's because I want Browns fans to be happy
07:57or at least be able to take in the season and move on to next year.
08:01It has nothing to do with who's behind them.
08:04Not anymore.
08:06They told you without telling you.
08:08Yeah, Shador's a likable young man.
08:10I hope the very best for him.
08:12But if you thought that he was the future, you ain't trading away Miles Garrett.
08:16And if you thought that he was the future, it wouldn't even be a conversation
08:20about any of the Deshaun Watson stuff.
08:22He just would have started.
08:24Yeah.
08:24He just would have started week one.
08:25So it's about being honest.
08:28It's about being truthful.
08:30And ever since that move, I've gotten rid of that conversation.
08:34It's just about happiness then.
08:37And if it's not about happiness, if that guy's going to go out and play,
08:41I still think the other shoe's going to drop.
08:43I don't think he's that great anymore.
08:45I think he can be maybe serviceable.
08:47But then again, if you're shortening the conversation with him
08:51to be able to get the plays out, does that mean he's a backup in this league?
08:54For a 10-year veteran.
08:55So he still may not be out of the woods here.
08:57This is it.
08:58Now, I don't know.
08:59The crazy talk.
09:00You want to get crazy.
09:01But that's what I'm saying, Tone.
09:02Real quick, when this guy writes this, they're telling you, buddy.
09:05They already know.
09:06We're on to Arch and Moore and everybody else that you want to bring up, man.
09:12We're on to Darian Mensah.
09:15That's just the truth.
09:16Yeah.
09:16Well, I will also say it would be kind of funny if he somehow,
09:21the one part of the formula none of us had is if he actually plays like this,
09:26but they lose games, which we didn't anticipate that, right?
09:29Because you still develop your other guys.
09:31Well, if that's the case.
09:32Because he's throwing with anticipation.
09:34That's Ryan Fitzpatrick.
09:35He's throwing with anticipation better than Shador is.
09:37Well, if that was the case, I mean, could you actually make a case then
09:41that another team might want him considering all the injuries?
09:44I never thought that was possible a week ago.
09:46Away you go, dude.
09:47Away you go.
09:47A week ago, I never thought that was possible.
09:49Yeah, whatever.
09:50Away you go.
09:51But that would be the natural order of things if contractually you could make it work.
09:55So I think what this guy is writing here,
09:57like my visceral reaction as a Browns fan is going,
10:00what the hell are you talking about?
10:01I'm like, well, no.
10:02There's a lot of people who are Browns fans who don't care for Deshaun Watson
10:06who are reading this going, yeah, hold on, though.
10:10They've told you.
10:11Because 95 isn't on the team anymore.
10:14They've told you what they think.
10:16And there's other little ways, but that's what it is.
10:19And I think that Shador will play this year, and I hope he does well.
10:21I want people to be happy.
10:22But as far as the future conversation is concerned,
10:27if you noticed, we're having a lot more conversations about guys at Miami,
10:33a guy at Oregon, a guy at Texas, name your choice,
10:38than we are about who we already have in our quarterback room.
10:422-1-6-4-7-4-0-0-92.
10:44And that's because you guys,
10:46oh, the Browns tell you what they want you to talk about.
10:48Oh, the Browns showed us what we should talk about.
10:51And that is the future when it comes to that room.
