At the start of last season Cleveland Browns officials were comfortable with their two backup quarterbacks behind Deshaun Watson: Dorian Thompson-Robinson and P.J. Walker, neither of whom had much of a track record in the NFL. Thompson-Robinson was a rookie. Walker had started seven games for the Carolina Panthers from 2020-23, during which he threw five touchdown passes, 11 interceptions, and was sacked 18 times in seven games.
Resume-wise, that seemed like a rather light quarterback room for a team like the Browns, who saw themselves as Super Bowl contenders. Most contending teams prefer experienced veterans as their backup quarterbacks. Watson had not quarterbacked a team for a full season since 2020, and his backups in Cleveland were not exactly overflowing with experience.
When Watson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in Cleveland’s ninth game of the season, the Browns’ decision, at the start of the season, to not sign an experienced backup quarterback came back to haunt them.
It led to Cleveland using five different starting quarterbacks in the 2023 season. Remarkably, two-time NFL Coach of the Year Kevin Stefanski was still able to get the Browns into the playoffs, but it was a very brief appearance as they were routed 45-14 by Houston in the wildcard game.
That experience may have been the impetus for the Browns acting quickly in restocking their quarterback room for 2024. They have signed free agent Jameis Winston, and added Tyler Huntley to their practice squad.
Given that Watson, due to a suspension and injuries, has only started 12 of the 34 games the Browns have played since acquiring him in a 2022 trade with Houston, the signing of Winston is significant.
The 30-year-old was the first overall pick, by Tampa Bay, in the 2015 NFL draft. Winston spent five years with the Buccaneers and four with New Orleans. He has not played a full season as a starting quarterback since 2019 with Tampa Bay, when he threw for 33 touchdowns, a league-high 5,109 yards, but also a league-high 30 interceptions.
“I’m a firm believer that nothing happens by coincidence,” Winston told reporters on a Zoom call. “So when this opportunity came about, we locked in and we communicated, we collaborated on it, and this just felt like a great fit for me.”
Browns officials have not yet spoken with reporters on the signing of Winston, nor about the decision not to bring back popular Joe Flacco, who was sensational as a late-season addition last year in helping guide the Browns to the playoffs. But it is clear that Winston is excited about joining the Browns.
“This opportunity really stood out because of the great organization, the incredible fan base, the incredible people that this city possesses, and just the opportunity to remain grateful and to build and influence others around me,” said Winston.
More than anything, however, Winston’s presence gives the Browns an experienced, backup quarterback, which all playoff contenders need, but Cleveland lacked at the start of last season, and continued to lack until they finally signed Flacco on November 20.
Flacco saved the Browns’ season, and put on a clinic on how to do exactly that. The Browns players rallied around him, Browns fans could not get enough of him, Flacco loved playing for Cleveland, and made it known that he would gladly come back in the same role in 2024. But Browns officials, oddly enough, decided to go in a different direction.
That opened the door for Winston, who is now in the on-deck circle should Watson get injured in the 2024 season.
“I’m so excited to work with this young man,” said Winston, “and help him be what he is capable of being, and that’s being one of the best quarterbacks in this league.”