A prominent Cleveland Browns reporter is teeing off on the franchise for “lying” to its fans after Jameis Winston led the club to a stunning 29-24 home win over the red-hot Baltimore Ravens.
Jameis Winston made his first start as a Cleveland Brown on Sunday, delivering a near-perfect performance (27-of-41 for 334 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions) in a thrilling victory against Lamar Jackson and company.
Winston took over as the starting QB after Cleveland lost Deshaun Watson for the year with an Achilles tear in Week 7 against the Philadelphia Eagles. Winston’s incredible outing on Sunday confirmed what everyone knew: that the Browns made the mistake of being too patient with Watson before his season-ending injury.
On the latest edition of the “Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show”, Browns reporter Jason Lloyd of The Athletic ripped on Kevin Stefanski’s squad for “lying” to the fanbase. Lloyd cited Stefanski’s comments about how Watson gave Cleveland “the best chance to win” before his Achilles tear:
“The Browns have lied to you. They told you that Deshaun Watson gave this team the best chance to win. You knew it wasn’t true, I knew it wasn’t true. We all knew it wasn’t true. The entire city of Cleveland, the entire franchise knew it wasn’t true….trying to prove the contract was a valid decision. It wasn’t. We knew that by the end of September and they wrecked their own season.”
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As Lloyd pointed out, a Browns starting quarterback not named Deshaun Watson has thrown for over 300 yards in five straight games. Joe Flacco had four straight 300-yard games last year, and Jameis Winston extended the streak with an excellent outing on Sunday.
Watson signed a five-year contract worth a fully guaranteed $230 million in the 2022 offseason. Regardless of the gigantic financial ramifications, it couldn’t be more obvious that the Browns are better off cutting him in the offseason.
Jameis Winston Gets Another Chance To Prove Himself
The New Orleans Saints had hoped that Winston would be able to succeed Drew Brees following his retirement, but multiple injuries derailed that opportunity. After backing up Derek Carr last year, the first-overall pick of 2015 signed a deal to back up Watson in Cleveland.
It’s just one game, yes. But if Winston continues to play like that down the stretch, he’ll have cemented himself as a starting QB in this league.
