Roger Goodell said on Tuesday that there is no timetable on determining whether or not Deshaun Watson will be disciplined by the league during the 2022 season. While he was not suspended, Watson did not play a snap last year as he faced 22 civil lawsuits against him alleging sexual assault and sexual misconduct during massage sessions. Prior to Watson being traded, a grand jury in Texas determined that Watson will not face charges on the criminal complaints following a police investigation into those civil lawsuits.
"We will seek to get to the bottom of the facts," Goodell said, via ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Watson signed a record-setting contact with the Browns after the Texans sent Watson and a 2024 sixth-round pick to the Browns in exchange for first-round picks in 2022, 2023, and 2024 along with a 2023 third-rounder and 2022 and 2024 fourth-round selections.
The Browns have a backup plan in the event that Watson is suspended for a number of games. Cleveland recently signed veteran Jacoby Brissett, who made 37 starts during his time with the Patriots, Colts and Dolphins. He won two of his five starts in Miami last year while playing in place of injured starter Tua Tagovailoa. Brissett went 7-8 with 18 touchdowns and six interceptions as the Colts' starting quarterback in 2019.
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"We really value that backup quarterback position," Stefanski said this week, via The Athletic's Zac Jackson. "I certainly do. I know Andrew (Berry, the Browns general manager) does. It's an important role. That person has to be ready to get in there and win you a ball game at a moment's notice. So having a guy like Jacoby who's been through it, has started a lot of football games, he's really a smart young man. Just getting to know him when we brought him in throughout the process, I think we got a really good one there."
The Browns have not ruled out the possibility of keeping Baker Mayfield despite the additions of Watson and Brissett. Mayfield would come at a cost, however, as he is slated to earn $18.8 million this season after Cleveland picked up his fifth-year option last offseason.
"The reality of it is, quarterbacks are valuable," Berry said. "Baker's a good player and you can't have enough good players on your roster. We've already planned to make it work and we'll just see how the next few weeks go, the next few months go."
