The Browns and their fan base have not been on the same page when it comes to the team’s starting quarterback.
Before Watson was officially named QB1, he was booed when he appeared and played poorly during the team’s second preseason game last month. That set Watson off, with the quarterback saying fans were being “disrespectful,” and the reaction had nothing to do with his performance.
Head coach Todd Monken has maintained that everyone will be fine if the Browns are playing winning football. But he admitted in an interview with 92.3 The Fan on Tuesday morning that after the second preseason game, there was some question about Watson’s confidence and ability to play if he’s not supported.
“I mean, after that game — I’ll just say during the game and then after the game, certainly Deshaun was not in a great headspace. Let’s be real honest about it,” Monken told hosts Ken Carman and Anthony Lima. “He said it after the game, he was frustrated, and didn’t particularly play well. And we don’t coach well and call it well around him. So, we certainly all have to own that.
“I looked at it more along the lines of a speed bump and just a blip on the radar more than the norm of what I had seen over the course of the five months being here, in terms of his confidence, how hard he’s worked to get back to where he’s at today. And he did, he came to me right after that, him and I had a good conversation, and he said, ‘I’m not sure I handled that the right way. But I did have things that were on my heart.’ And I asked him, I said, ‘Do you feel like you’ve gotten rid of it?’ Because it’s one thing to say it. It’s another thing to really believe it, that OK, I needed to get this off my chest, it’s over, I just want to go out there and play great football. I’ve worked awfully hard to get back.”
Monken added that he believes Watson when the quarterback says he’s OK and will be fine moving forward.
“The only way you’re going to get the best out of your players is to have a verbal contract that says, I’ve got your back. I’ve got your back, I’ve got you,” Monken said. “That’s what we’ve done with Deshaun, and we look forward to playing this weekend.”
While Monken reiterated that he didn’t take the fans’ opinion of Watson into account when selecting him over Shedeur Sanders as the winner of the QB competition, he understood the negative reaction.
“[T]he fans just want us to win and play good football. So, I do understand some of the frustration,” Monken said. “I do think that, unfortunately, it’s viewed a little bit like hate and hope — is really the way I put it. The fans really just want hope. And Deshaun, over the years that he’s been here, has frustrated the fans and, certainly, himself in terms of wanting to play better for the Cleveland fans and the organization.
“And I get where they’re coming from, but ultimately, any great fanbase like ours wants to win, wants to see a great product on the field. And that’s what we’re aiming to do starting this week and as long as I’m the head coach here.”
The Browns will open the season on the road against the Jaguars at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon.
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