Schultz: Browns will name Deshaun Watson QB1

The Seahawks face the Broncos in Week 6’s Thursday Night Football game. Late last week, Macdonald acknowledged that the short turnaround time would make it difficult to ramp up Charbonnet as planned. The Seahawks are set to scale back the intensity at practice this week, which runs counter to the rehab plan. The Seahawks face the Chiefs in Week 7’s Sunday Night Football game. That seems like a plausible return date at this point.

It was odd usage for Washington, who had at least five carries in three of four games headed into Week 5. Even Ashton Jeanty being limited with his ankle and foot injuries did nothing to bolster Washington’s involvement in the Vegas offense. In fact, Dylan Laube was the team’s clear No. 2 back behind Jeanty on Sunday. Laube had four carries and three receptions and punched in a short touchdown in the second half of the blowout loss. It raises serious questions about what Washington’s workload might look like if Jeanty misses time this season.

Lions coach Dan Campbell tasked St. Brown with punt return duties (2/36) after Tom Kennedy got hurt. While St. Brown looked great weaving through traffic, his first return nearly ended in a lost fumble, but a teammate dove on the loose ball, bailing him out after it was punched out of St. Brown possession. St. Brown nearly had a 43-yard touchdown on a sideline play-action shot on the Lions’ seventh drive, but he couldn’t quite get his hands on it. He almost bagged short scores via out routes on the Lions’ eighth and ninth drives, but his coverage defender effectively challenged the pass on the first and the pass was just out of his reach on the second. He had a nice 36-yard catch-and-run on the eighth drive and nearly nabbed another explosive gain on the sixth drive, but Sam LaPorta accidentally knocked him down 11 yards downfield after St. Brown leapt over a downed Cardinals defender. He had another fumble recovered by a teammate after snagging a pass on a crosser. The Lions’ stud wide receiver will be an elite WR1 against the Packers following the Lions’ Week 6 bye.

JSN appeared to be playing through a bit of an ankle injury in this one, but he looked perfectly fine when he turned what would have been a short two-yard reception upfield for a 16-yard touchdown in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, as the Seahawks were attempting a comeback, JSN hauled in a 35-yard reception, evading multiple defenders to get the Seahawks to the 50-yard line. A few plays later, he would drop a wide-open pass that may have set the Seahawks up for a game-winning field goal opportunity, but JSN did his part to keep the Seahawks in what proved to be a sloppy game for the offense. He’s gone for 100-plus yards in four of his first five games of the season and will look for his fifth 100-yard game on Thursday night when the Seahawks visit the Broncos.

Sacks and a few errant throws under pressure derailed the Lions’ first three drives. Goff got things back on track after that, guiding the offense to seven straight scoring drives, including six touchdowns. He even punched in a one-yard rushing touchdown via a quarterback sneak, marking his first rushing score since 2023. Goff could have boosted his passing yards total with a likely explosive gain by targeting an open Jameson Williams on the first drive after halftime, but he instead checked down to Sam LaPorta in the flats for an eight-yard pickup. The Lions are on bye in Week 6, but Goff will be a locked-in QB1 against the Packers in Week 7.

Williams caught a beautifully thrown 49-yard score from Drake Maye, who had four touchdown passes to go along with 376 yards through the air in the blowout victory. Williams ran a route on 19 of the team’s 42 drop backs with Mack Hollins on injured reserve. He also came down with a long grab in the second half that put the Pats in position to take a four-score lead. A.J. Brown’s eventual return to the New England offense — as soon as this week against the Jets — will further limit Williams’ snaps and routes. He won’t be playable in most formats going forward.

Valdes-Scantling finished second in receiving yards for the Chargers against the Broncos. That’s not great. The veteran wideout is going to get some opportunities because of the injuries, but that shouldn’t equate to a chance to help a fantasy roster. He’ll face the Chiefs in Week 6.

It was a rough outing for Darnold, who was picked off on his first pass attempt of the day and absorbed a season-high five sacks. His lone touchdown pass came on a 16-yard pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Darnold completed a short two-yard pass to JSN, who turned it upfield for the score to give the Seahawks the 23-21 lead with just over five minutes left in the third quarter. On the Seahawks’ final drive of the game, Darnold found JSN for a 35-yard completion, but three straight incompletions, including an uncharacteristic drop by JSN, put the Seahawks in a fourth-and-10 situation that they were unable to convert after Cooper Kupp came up a yard short on his second reception of the night. Darnold has now thrown seven touchdowns and six interceptions in his last three games since returning from injury, and now faces a short week to get ready for the Broncos on Thursday night. He profiles as a mid-to-low-end QB2 in what could be a tough road matchup.

Harris was a complete non-factor even against the depleted Broncos’ secondary. The second-year wideout was the top target with Ladd McConkey and Quinton Johnston unavailable, and that extra attention didn’t help. Harris will try and bounce back in Week 6 against the Chiefs.