Sports
Deshaun Watson got trampled by the Cowboys, but please don’t blame the protection
CLEVELAND — How long? How much longer do Browns fans have to wait to see the quarterback they were promised?
We’re into Year 3 of the Deshaun Watson Experience and the first lap around the track didn’t feel any differently. Is it too late to speak to a manager and request a refund?
It’s supposed to be different this year. He’s healthy now. The suspension is long behind him. The offense has been rebuilt to suit his strengths. The Browns have overhauled their entire operation to make him more comfortable.
Success can still happen. It’s only one game and this offense had little time together in the preseason and training camp. That was evident during Sunday’s 33-17 embarrassment at the hands of the Dallas Cowboys.
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Browns show they’re not ready for big stage in lopsided loss to Cowboys
Watson should’ve played at some point in the preseason. That’s an organizational failure. It was 300 days from his broken shoulder last season until Sunday’s opener. We’ve been through this before with Watson and long layoffs. We know how it ends by now.
It may not have made a difference in Sunday’s outcome, but it’s impossible to watch the Browns’ first game and believe they were ready for the start of the season. They weren’t. Whether they’ll be ready for the start of the season by Week 2 is debatable at this point.
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But the bulk of this mess belongs to the quarterback. His minus-0.36 EPA/play was tied for second-worst on Sunday. Yes, there were far too many drops by his receivers, but his expected completion percentage was still less than 64 percent. That was fourth-worst for Week 1 entering Sunday night’s game.
If we’re being honest, this rebuilt offense had a “the orange is oranger” type of feel to it. Nothing really looked much different from what we’ve seen previously other than a deeper disdain to run the ball. There were only a handful of RPO calls and at least one of them was negated by penalty. Watson was still under center for a decent amount of time.
Watson was hit 17 times and sacked six. The 17 hits were easily the most of any quarterback in Week 1. But the one narrative we can’t have this week, the one talking point I won’t stand for is that Watson was hit too much because his protection broke down and he didn’t have enough time to throw. It’s a lazy assumption based on the statistics and the most outrageous lie you’ll hear all week. It is categorically false. Even Browns coach Kevin Stefanski has been duped.
“He got hit way too often,” Stefanski said. “We can’t let that happen to him. … We have to protect our quarterback better than that.”
Or, and hear me out, the quarterback has to protect himself better than that.
Dallas’ defense blitzed on one-fourth of its snaps, which was fairly average compared to other Week 1 teams. Here are the important numbers to know, according to a deep dive on data provided by TruMedia and PFF. All of the league-wide rankings are through all Week 1 games before Monday night.
• Watson averaged 4.16 seconds to throw per pressured dropback Sunday, the eighth-best time under pressure. On sacks that resulted from pressure, he held the ball for 4.29 seconds, the sixth-best time in Week 1.
• On the six sacks he did take, his average time to throw was 4.87 seconds — which ranked 10th.
• Since he joined the Browns in 2022, Watson has been the slowest from snap to throw on pressured dropbacks of any quarterback across the league (4.60 seconds). Tom Brady, who coincidentally called the game for Fox, was the fastest at 3.26 seconds.
Part of what has made Watson great throughout his career is his ability to hold the ball and extend plays. It’s disingenuous to then turn around and blame his line for protection breakdowns when they are giving him more time to throw against pressure than any other offensive line in the NFL the past two-plus seasons.
This isn’t a protection issue. It’s a Watson issue.
There were costly procedure and false start penalties Sunday on both of the Browns’ starting tackles. That has to get cleaned up. But there was at least one sack that occurred because Watson was standing where he wasn’t expected to be so the protection wasn’t angled that way.
It’s rhythm and timing issues. It’s “feel” issues. It just doesn’t seem like he’s seeing the field well. Or he’s not processing what he’s seeing.
There were receivers open down the field Sunday, Watson was just busy throwing the ball 7 yards out of bounds on sideline routes and fade routes into the end zone.
Here’s the best throw Deshaun Watson made yesterday. Hit CeeDee in stride.
Baller.#Brownspic.twitter.com/ifwtAlyzio
— Ed Greenberger (@EdGreenberger) September 9, 2024
It was awful. It was worse than awful. It was some of the worst quarterback play in the league during Week 1.
Forty-five minutes after Sunday’s game ended, while most players had showered and long departed the locker room, Watson was still unshowered wearing stained football pants and chatting with backup quarterback Jameis Winston.
It was an emotional few days for Watson, whose father died this week. He was estranged from his father for most of his life, according to a Houston Chronicle story in 2017. But navigating grief is never easy.
“I’m not going to use that as an excuse for why we played bad, but it was a heavy heart these last couple of days,” Watson said. “But again, I don’t want to use that as an excuse.”
Stefanski and the Browns have done everything they can to make Watson more comfortable in this offense. As Year 3 begins, the organization is holding on tight, patiently waiting for its $230 million gamble to show a proper return on its bold investment.
How long? How much longer will they have to wait?
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(Photo of Deshaun Watson getting hit by Micah Parsons: Nick Cammett / Getty Images)
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For the first time in more than two decades, the Illinois men’s basketball team will still be dancing when the Final Four tips off.
Iowa’s underdog run in the NCAA Tournament ended Saturday with a 71-59 loss to a dominant Illinois team. Before Illinois could cut down the nets at Houston’s Toyota Center, a buzzer malfunction caused a loud, roughly 10-minute delay.
The buzzer initially sounded signaling the end of a media timeout with just under eight minutes remaining in the first half. The horn continued blaring for about another seven minutes.
A referee talks with the scorer’s table during an official’s timeout due to a broken shot clock horn during the first half of an Elite Eight game between Iowa and Illinois in the NCAA Tournament Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Houston, Texas. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Players stood on the court ready to play for a couple of minutes before both teams started to warm up as the buzzer continued to sound.
It was finally silenced, to cheers from the crowd, but then the main scoreboard and video screen that hangs over the middle of the court went dark.
The game ultimately resumed with the big scoreboard still off. Two smaller scoreboards at each end of the arena were working.
Freshman guard Keaton Wagler scored 25 points to help secure Illinois’ first Final Four berth since 2005.
Keaton Wagler (23) of the Illinois Fighting Illini dribbles against Isaia Howard (23) of the Iowa Hawkeyes during the first half in the Elite Eight of the 2026 NCAA Tournament at Toyota Center March 28, 2026, in Houston, Texas. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)
This will be the sixth overall trip to the Final Four for Illinois, which has never won a national title. The Fighting Illini will face either Duke or UConn next week in Indianapolis.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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BASEBALL
CITY SECTION
Palisades 2, North Hollywood 1
South Gate 5, Sun Valley Poly 4
SOUTHERN SECTION
Alta Loma 5, Schurr 3
Anaheim Canyon 6, Segerstrom 4
Beaumont 13, San Jacinto Valley Academy 3
Bethel Christian 15, United Christian Academy 1
Brea Olinda 8, Tustin 2
Buena Park 5, Savanna 3
Cajon 9, Granite Hills 5
Claremont 13, Littlerock 2
Compton 12, Compton Centennial 3
Covina 9, San Marino 6
El Segundo 13, Palos Verdes 4
Ganesha 13, Santa Ana Foothill 3
Golden Valley 9, Lancaster 8
Hesperia 8, Miller 7
Katella 6, Canyon Springs 3
La Serna 5, Alhambra 2
Linfield Christian 10, Woodbridge 0
Long Beach Cabrillo 17, Hawthorne 1
Montclair 2, Vista del Lago 0
Moorpark 16, Foothill Tech 11
Oxford Academy 7, Century 6
Rancho Mirage 1, Indian Springs 0
Rancho Verde 9, Riverside Poly 5
San Dimas 13, Irvine 2
Santa Monica Pacifica Christian 14, HMSA 11
Sonora 7, Long Beach Wilson 6
St. Paul 5, El Modena 3
Troy 5, Hacienda Heights Wilson 2
Valley View 16, Carter 10
Whittier Christian 9, Estancia 3
INTERSECTIONAL
Dominguez 13, King/Drew 2
Downers Grove 11, Santa Ana Calvary Chapel
Downtown Magnets 12, Long Beach Jordan 5
Inglewood 10, Stella 0
Layton 5, Schurr 4
Kentucky Trinity 5, St. John Bosco 0
Murrieta Valley 10, Galena 7
Orange Lutheran 7, Florida Venice 6
Santa Barbara 14, Douglas 6
Santa Monica Pacifica Christian 16, Collins Family 1
St. Bernard 7, San Diego University City 5
Tonopah 23, Lone Pine 8
SOFTBALL
CITY SECTION
San Fernando 5, LA Roosevelt 3
San Pedro 11, Legacy 1
Sun Valley Poly 8, LA Roosevelt 2
SOUTHERN SECTION
Alemany 9, Canyon Country Canyon 1
Burbank Burroughs 2, Rosary Academy 1
California 16, Whittier Christian 13
California 7, San Clemente 1
Camarillo 4, Chaminade 3
Camarillo 18, Rio Mesa 0
Capistrano Valley 9, Beckman 3
Chino Hills 15, Chino 3
Corona 10, Ridgecrest Burroughs 0
Crean Lutheran 11, Avalon 2
Crean Lutheran 13, Avalon 2
Edison 7, Crescenta Valley 5
Edison 2, Vasquez 1
Irvine 7, Long Beach Wilson 5
JSerra 2, Capistrano Valley 1
Leuzinger 11, Hawthorne 0
Marina 2, Los Alamitos 1
Mater Dei 10, Redondo Union 0
Mira Costa 9, Newport Harbor 3
Palos Verdes 2, Los Altos 1
Paraclete 11, Saugus 1
Rancho Mirage 14, Cathedral City 6
Rosary Academy 7, Fountain Valley 2
San Clemente 7, Whittier Christian 2
Simi Valley 7, West Ranch 1
Simi Valley 5, St. Bonaventure 5
St. Genevieve 7, Sacred Heart of Jesus 4
St. Paul 6, Warren 2
St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy d. Hoover, forfeit
Thousand Oaks 8, Rio Mesa 0
United Christian Academy 13, Bethel Christian 5
Vasquez 4, Woodbridge 0
Warren 5, La Serna 0
Westlake 4, St. Bonaventure 2
Westlake 0, Chaminade 0
Westlake 4, St. Bonaventure 2
West Ranch 10, Thousand Oaks 4
West Torrance 6, Hart 0
INTERSECTIONAL
Alemany 11, Arleta 1
Arleta 10, Canyon Country Canyon 8
Downey 6, Legacy 0
Downey 10, San Pedro 0
Granada Hills 8, La Serna 5
Muir 8, San Fernando 4
Muir 12, Sun Valley Poly 3
San Luis Obispo 7, Torres 6
St. Paul 8, Granada Hills 4
Sports
‘Quad God’ Ilia Malinin avenges Olympic disappointment with backflip for third straight world title
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It seems like Ilia Malinin, the “Quad God,” has done a nice job of moving on from his Olympic heartbreak.
Last month, the 21-year-old Team USA star was the overwhelming favorite to bring home the gold in the men’s free skate. But the unimaginable happened as he fell twice and dropped all the way to eighth place.
However, he has begun to avenge the loss and is now a three-time world champion.
Ilia Malinin from the United States competes during the men free skating at the Figure Skating World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Malinin shouted and punched the air with relief after finishing a skate that showed he had achieved his desire to “move on” from the Olympics after days of being tormented by his mistakes.
Malinin scored 218.11 in the free skate for a total of 329.40, far ahead of silver medalist Yuma Kagiyama of Japan on 306.67. Another Japanese skater, Shun Sato, was third on 288.54.
Malinin was blunt about his Olympic performance when speaking to NBC afterward, saying simply, “I blew it,” and said it was a clear mental hurdle from start to finish.
“I just had so many thoughts and memories flood right before I got into my starting pose, and almost, I think, it maybe overwhelmed me a little bit. I’ve been through a lot in my life, a lot of bad and good experiences,” Malinin told reporters.
Gold medalist Ilia Malinin from the United States waves to spectators after the medal ceremony after the men’s free skating at the Figure Skating World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
LINDSEY VONN KEEPING RETURN TO SKIING ON TABLE DESPITE INJURIES: ‘I DON’T LIKE TO CLOSE THE DOOR ON ANYTHING’
“So, I just feel like it’s the pressure of especially being that Olympic gold medal hopeful. It was just something I can’t control now. The pressure of the Olympics, it’s really something different, and I think not a lot of people understand that. They only understand that from the inside and going into this competition, especially today, I felt really confident, really good,” he added. “But it really just went by so fast I did not have time to process.”
But with some pressure off, Malinin was able to show who he truly is on the ice.
Gold medalist, Ilia Malinin from the United States waves before the medal ceremony after the men’s free skating at the Figure Skating World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, Saturday, March 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Malinin becomes the first skater to win three consecutive men’s world titles since fellow American Nathan Chen, who achieved the feat in 2018, 2019 and 2021 after the 2020 event was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fox News’ Jackson Thompson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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