USA TODAY sports
It would have been bad for Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson if he had been suspended for the entire season. It probably wouldn’t have been that bad for the Browns.
If Watson had missed the full season, his contract would have expired until next year. It would have been a real break in his career. He would have received the minimum salary for 2023 (something on the order of $1 million) rather than the $46 million he is expected to make. And he would have been under contract until 2027, not 2026.
The 11-game ban does not affect his contract. (Some say a 12-game ban would have delayed his contract by a year. Without going into the specifics, that’s incorrect.) As a result, the Browns will have to pay Watson $46 million next year barring a reorganization. And they will only have him until 2026, not 2027 – barring an extension.
What will six games with Watson bring the Browns in 2022? Maybe they’re treading water with a tough schedule and a chance to get hot on the track. But when he returns in December, it will be nearly 23 months since he last played in a regular-season game.
Whatever the Browns do this year, not having Watson for 11 games will make it harder to get there. But it still counts as the first of five years under his contract. From 2023 he only has four years left.
So, yes, it would arguably have been better for the Browns not to have Watson at all in 2022. Especially if they are between 4 and 7 or worse when he returns.