With Deshaun Watson out for the season with a ruptured Achilles, the Cleveland Browns will turn to Jameis Winston as their starting quarterback, head coach Kevin Stefanski said on Wednesday. Watson suffered the injury during the Browns’ 21-14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
Ahead of Sunday’s game, the Browns had designated Winston as its emergency quarterback behind Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Now, with Watson out, Winston has been promoted, with Cleveland giving the start to the veteran quarterback.
Winston, a 10-year veteran of the league, signed a one-year contract with the Browns in March after stints with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints.
On Sunday, after Watson went down, Thompson-Robinson took over as quarterback, going 11-of-24 for 82 yards and two interceptions. Winston was then subbed in to finish the game, going 5-for-11 for 67 yards, scoring a late touchdown with less than two minutes remaining.
Watson is set to undergo surgery in the coming weeks. Although the team has insurance on the quarterback’s massive contract, the financial implications of the deal had already been bogging the team down prior to Watson going down.
The 1-6 Browns’ upcoming stretch includes two home games — against the Baltimore Ravens (5-2) and Los Angeles Chargers (3-3) — and a bye in Week 10. For the near future at least, Cleveland will have Winston guide the team through the rest of this season.