The 4-2 is not indicative of whether or not the Watson trade is a disaster as wins are a team metric that is heavily weighted, but not completely reliant on the QB. If that was the case, the argument for it being a disaster would be as simple as pointing out that PJ Walker has led the team to half those victories for a measly $1m as opposed to a $230m fully guaranteed boat anchor contract.
But let’s look at it more objectively. Over the past couple of weeks, Jordan Love has become the leaguewide punching bag and the situation in Green Bay is being described as a disaster. Let’s compare the 2 QBs current season side by side, keeping in mind that Love has 6 games compared to Watson starting (but not completing) 4.
Green Bay used their own 1st round pick (26th overall) to acquire Jordan Love. The Browns traded 2022, 2023, and 2024 1st round picks as well as a 2023 3rd round pick, and 2022 and 2024 4th round picks to acquire Watson and a 2024 6th round pick. Not to mention that Watson sat out for the Texans in 2021, and had a lengthy suspension in 2022. The Browns still traded the farm for him knowing that his suspension meant that he wouldnt be able to join the team for quite some time while also casting mystery on what almost 2 seasons on the sidelines would mean for his level of play once back. For a team that has cycled through QBs at an alarming pace over the past couple of decades, it’s no surprise that Watson will likely be added to the pile. But considering the baggage that he brings with him, anything short of a run to the Super Bowl should be considered a massive err in judgment by this team. Even if that were to happen, it still shows a lack of character in the organization to trade away their future for a somebody like Watson.
TL:DR - At this point, unless something drastically changes for the Browns with Watson as QB, this has been a failure.
The 4-2 is not indicative of whether or not the Watson trade is a disaster as wins are a team metric that is heavily weighted, but not completely reliant on the QB. If that was the case, the argument for it being a disaster would be as simple as pointing out that PJ Walker has led the team to half those victories for a measly $1m as opposed to a $230m fully guaranteed boat anchor contract.
But let’s look at it more objectively. Over the past couple of weeks, Jordan Love has become the leaguewide punching bag and the situation in Green Bay is being described as a disaster. Let’s compare the 2 QBs current season side by side, keeping in mind that Love has 6 games compared to Watson starting (but not completing) 4.
Love - Watson
Comp% 57.5 - 61.7
QBR 79.4 - 80.9
Yards/gm 210.5 - 170.8
Yards/att 6.5 - 6.4
Long 77 - 43
TD% 5.2 - 3.7
TD/INT 10/7 - 4/3
Fum(L) 2(0) - 4(2)
Rush yards 130 - 83
Yards/att 6.2 - 5.5
Yards/gm 21.7 - 20.8
Long 26 - 13
TDs 2 - 1
2023 cap hit $4.4m - $19.5m
2024 cap hit $7.7m - $64m
Guaranteed $13.5m - $230m
Signed thru 2024 - 2027
Green Bay used their own 1st round pick (26th overall) to acquire Jordan Love. The Browns traded 2022, 2023, and 2024 1st round picks as well as a 2023 3rd round pick, and 2022 and 2024 4th round picks to acquire Watson and a 2024 6th round pick. Not to mention that Watson sat out for the Texans in 2021, and had a lengthy suspension in 2022. The Browns still traded the farm for him knowing that his suspension meant that he wouldnt be able to join the team for quite some time while also casting mystery on what almost 2 seasons on the sidelines would mean for his level of play once back. For a team that has cycled through QBs at an alarming pace over the past couple of decades, it’s no surprise that Watson will likely be added to the pile. But considering the baggage that he brings with him, anything short of a run to the Super Bowl should be considered a massive err in judgment by this team. Even if that were to happen, it still shows a lack of character in the organization to trade away their future for a somebody like Watson.
TL:DR - At this point, unless something drastically changes for the Browns with Watson as QB, this has been a failure.