Not even a full 72 hours after the Cleveland Browns biggest victory of the 2023 season, expectations that were on the rise crashed directly into Brownie the Elf’s face in the midfield of their stadium.
Deshaun Watson, who struggled with injuries throughout the season, has been ruled out for the rest of the year due to a throwing shoulder fracture. If only the Browns had a quarterback like Josh Dobbs to take over and potentially guide the team to the playoffs…
Unfortunately for the Browns, they have decided to cut Dobbs from their roster twice in the last two years. In 2022, he was Jacoby Brissett’s backup while Watson served his NFL-issued suspension for serial sexual misconduct. Once Watson was eligible to play, the Browns cut Dobbs.
In March, they re-signed Dobbs to a one-year contract worth $2 million. He had two respectable starts for the Tennessee Titans at the end of the 2022 season. With Kyler Murray unavailable before mid-season, the Arizona Cardinals took a swing and acquired Dobbs from the Browns for a 2024 fifth-round pick.
Dobbs took a star turn in his seventh NFL season. It is currently starting for Minnesota Vikings – his fifth different team since November 2022. They won both games he was on the roster, and the Browns have to hope that rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson or PJ Walker can lead the team with the NFL’s best defense . to the playoffs. They are I’m going with Thompson-Robinson on Sunday.
There is no way NFL teams can predict their starting quarterback missing the majority of a season. The goal teams usually have for a backup quarterback is for him to stabilize the offense for a few weeks while the starter heals. In 2019, Patrick Mahomes missed two games for the Kansas City Chiefs with a dislocated patella. Matt Moore stepped in and the Chiefs went 1-1 en route to the franchise’s first Super Bowl championship in 50 years.
Watson has been injured throughout this season, and even when he has been healthy, Dobbs has vastly outperformed him. Dobbs has a better total QBR, has thrown just one more interception than Watson despite playing four more games than him, and is a serious threat with 62 rushing attempts – almost 40 more than Watson.
Browns victory in Week 10 against the Baltimore Ravens This was probably Watson’s best game since signing that five-year, fully guaranteed contract. He passed for 213 yards and a touchdown, and his 16-yard run in the fourth quarter was the biggest play of their winning drive.
Dobbs has only been on the Vikings roster since October 31. In Week 10, he passed for more yards and didn’t turn the ball over, while Watson opened the game with a pick six, had a better completion percentage and average. more yards per pass attempt.
With eight weeks left in the regular season, the Vikings and Browns are currently in the playoffs. However, Minnesota firmly holds its wild-card spot, while Cleveland will have to fight against teams like Cincinnati Bengals And Buffalo Bills.
Turning down that fifth-round pick from the Cardinals in exchange for Dobbs would have been difficult for Cleveland. That’s valuable draft capital for a player the Browns didn’t even expect to win the season on the field. However, just hours before the trade, head coach Kevin Stefanski announced that Dobbs had won the backup job over Walker and Thompson-Robinson.
Dobbs had clearly impressed the coaching staff over the past two seasons. This season, with limited time to learn two new offenses, he was able to play decent football. If the Browns still had Dobbs, their outlook for the remainder of the season would be much better than it currently is.