Will start Sunday

Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski said Watson will start Week 14 against the Bengals, despite the rust he showed in last week's win over the Texans, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. " Deshaun is our quarterback. We're focused on having a really good day of practice [Wednesday] and having a great day on Sunday," the coach said.

Watson completed 12 of 22 passes for 131 yards with no touchdowns, a 53.9 rating and an interception Week 13. The rust was evident after not playing a game since 2020. At 5-7, the Browns hope to keep their slim playoff chances alive -- currently at nine percent per Five-Thirty-Eight and three percent according to the New York Times' playoff indicator -- but Stefanski has no plans to use an in-sync Jacoby Brissett and will stick with Watson, whose passes last week were often low or off target. The quarterback looked sharp during Wednesday's practice, but those sessions are much different than game conditions.