BEREA, Ohio — Deshaun Watson's 2026 debut inside Huntington Bank Field didn't go the way he hoped or expected. The preseason game against the Buffalo Bills saw some struggles on the field, but even more prominent was the tension in the crowd.
Fans booed Watson loudly during the third quarter of the preseason game, and after the game, he shot back at the reception he received.
“Man, I didn’t have any reaction [to the booing]. I think the biggest thing is, I think you guys know, and I think the whole world knows, it has nothing to do with the performance. It’s a little more personal than that. So, I think that’s a disrespectful thing," Watson said, before expanding on his feelings on the matter in follow-up questions. “Last time I played on this field, I tore my Achilles, and that same fan base cheered when I got hurt. So, what does that have to do with anything about performance? When a person gets hurt, especially in their own city, and they cheer?"
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Watson addressed his comments two days later after being named QB1 to start the season, saying that "my emotions got the best of me" and that he understood the frustration within the fan base.
But Watson hasn't had to deal with the fan base as a whole since that Bills preseason game, having not played in the final preseason game against the New England Patriots and the Browns starting the season with two road games.
That will change on Sunday, though, when the Browns face the Carolina Panthers in the home opener at Huntington Bank Field, and after Watson's strong Week 2 outing, he'll remain the starter for the matchup.
Watson hopes his 24-of-30, 238-yard, two-touchdown day will be enough to quell the frustration and booing within the fan base on Sunday. He shared a message with the fan base ahead of the game during his media availability on Wednesday.
"The biggest thing, I never try to go at war with the fans. So I think the biggest thing is just ready for support, ready to feel their energy, ready to get this big dub for the city of Cleveland and continue this great feeling that we have this week. So that's my motto is just keep pushing forward, finding ways to win on Sunday to take advantage of the opposing team and get the W," Watson said.
For Watson, moving on from the preseason confrontation with the fans is something he feels he's already done.
"We're past that. That's back in the day. I don't want to backtrack on anything. We're moving forward. There's great energy now. There's great energy this week within the locker room, within the city. So let's continue to build on that. So that's in the past, so let's push forward," Watson said.
That mindset is exactly what head coach Todd Monken wants to see out of Watson as he prepares to take the field in Cleveland on Sunday.
“He’s not on his own. We’re all here for him. It’s, 'What have you done all the work for, man? What have you done it for? What have you worked for 22 months to come back? To play and give yourself a chance to play at a high level,'" Monken said. "I said, ‘Let it rip. What do you have to fear? Let it rip, man. You’ve already had a hell of a career already, man. Let’s just go down fighting, go back, go down swinging. Let’s improve every week as a team and as a unit.'"
There's only one way to know how intense, for better or worse, the crowd will be on Sunday: wait and see when game day arrives. But this week of work for Watson and the Browns has been spent focused on the game plan and looking for their first home opener win in two seasons.
"We're present in the moment now. We're focusing on Carolina, coming home against a good opponent in front of our great fans, and we want that energy so we can go in there and get the W," Watson said.
