Deshaun Watson trade regrade now that Houston picks have been made

Ahead of the 2022 NFL season, the Cleveland Browns made a blockbuster trade with the Houston Texans, acquiring Deshaun Watson and handing him a five-year extension worth $230 million, all guaranteed.

By executing this deal, the Browns were acquiring a player who was a surefire top ten quarterback at the time but hadn't played at all in 2021 and had all sorts of off-field distractions. It's safe to say it hasn't worked out the way they envisioned.

Watson has appeared in just six games in both seasons he has been with Cleveland, completing 59.8% of his passes for 2,217 yards with 14 passing touchdowns and nine interceptions overall. He has been a shell of the star he once was, and that's just when he's been able to take the field. He missed time due to suspension in 2022 and due to injury in 2023.

For the Browns to get Watson, a younger star in the midst of his prime, they had to give up a ton even with the distractions. With the Texans making their selections in the 2024 NFL Draft, the trade is finally complete. It's time to regrade it.

NFL trade re-grade: Deshaun Watson has work to do to turn this trade around for the Browns

Admittedly, this could've been a lot worse for the Browns. While the Texans made some good picks here, mainly with their trade-up for Will Anderson Jr. in the 2023 Draft, there're some misses as well. However, it doesn't take a lot for them to win this deal with how Watson has looked in Cleveland.

Executing this trade allowed the Texans to completely bottom out and select C.J. Stroud, a quarterback who is already substantially better than Watson, in the first round right before they snagged Anderson. Stroud then led the Texans to a blowout win over the Browns in the AFC Wildcard Round.

The Texans didn't need every pick here to hit. They got a star in Anderson, and this trade allowed them to get their new franchise quarterback without having to pay Watson the exorbitant contract he got from Cleveland. That in itself is a win for them.

What makes this deal even crazier is that Watson wasn't even starting that playoff game. While he was out, Joe Flacco, a player who began the season on his couch and led Cleveland to the playoffs, was under center for that playoff defeat. While Flacco certainly has his shortcomings as a quarterback, the Browns offense looked a whole lot more dynamic with him under center than with Watson, and that's pretty damning.

The trade looks a little better for Cleveland now that they traded a sixth-round pick for Jerry Jeudy, a player who should contribute alongside Amari Cooper and Elijah Moore although the contract extension that they gave him was a bad one.

Still, even with Jeudy, this deal has been an utter disaster for the Browns. They got the universally disliked Watson and had to give him all of that guaranteed money for virtually no production. Their fortunes in this trade can always change if Watson finds a way to stay healthy and lead them to a Super Bowl run, but with how he has looked, it's hard to say this trade has been close at all.

Houston Texans Trade Grade: A-
Cleveland Browns Trade Grade: D