Latest disturbing development could lead the Browns to solving their Deshaun Watson problem

Deshaun Watson started off the 2024 season for the Cleveland Browns with the same poor play that he has shown since arriving a couple of years ago , and now it appears he has another legal case that has come about.

According to a report from Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, the Browns’ starting quarterback was sued Monday in Houston on an allegation of sexual assault and battery. You can read about the disturbing details of the lawsuit below.

This comes a couple of years after the original 20+ lawsuits were filed against Watson in 2021 while he was with the Houston Texans. Cleveland still chose to make a franchise-altering trade for Watson, knowing the baggage that he was coming with. The NFL suspended Watson for 11 games during the 2022 NFL season for violation of the Personal Conduct Policy.

Now with the new lawsuit that stems from a date that Watson had reportedly gone on, the NFL could suspend Watson again for violation of the Personal Conduct Policy. This is not the same situation as the previous lawsuits, which all were around massages that Watson was said to have paid for. In this case, Watson is accused of sexual assault and that could be a serious matter to the NFL.

As Florio points out, another suspension could give the Browns the right to void the guarantees that are left on the fully guaranteed $230 million that the Browns signed Watson to when they traded for him. With how he has performed through 13 games played in just over two seasons, the Browns could very well go that route.

Watson currently has guaranteed money tied to him through the 2026 season with the Browns and cutting him would be costly if they choose to go that route beforehand. However, the possibility of voiding the contract could very well happen if Watson is indeed suspended for the allegations from the lawsuit.

As has been the case since arriving in Cleveland, Watson continues to be more baggage than production on the field, and Browns fans have undoubtedly grown tired of it.

Related: Browns’ biggest question mark entering the season falls flat in ugly loss to Cowboys