Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson didn’t go to the Senior Bowl last month, which meant he passed on a chance to work with the Browns coaching staff and possibly make a case to them about why he should be the top pick in the NFL Draft this year.
Some people may have wondered if that choice was colored by a desire to go in the opposite direction and avoid joining the expansive list of quarterbacks who have run the Browns offense since the team’s return to the league in 1999. Watson said that wasn’t the case during a Thursday appearance on NFL Network.
“That’s wrong, false information,” Watson said. “I talked to [Browns coach] Hue Jackson, we had a great conversation right after the national championship game and I told him, ‘Hey, this is what I’m thinking about’ and he understood everything. I talked with my family, my agent, my trainer, all the coaches at Clemson, and it was just best for me to go ahead and get started in the draft process. I moved to California, so it was just a lot moving from Georgia to California [to train ahead of the Scouting Combine] and then trying to go back to the Senior Bowl.”
The Browns will get an opportunity to watch Watson throw the ball at the combine as he said Thursday that he plans to do those drills in Indianapolis later this month. The other 31 teams will also get a chance to watch Watson, but that won’t mean much if Cleveland decides to take Clemson coach Dabo Swinney’s advice and make Watson their choice.
