Only crazy people don’t change their minds. Quarterback Deshaun Watson finally makes his way to Cleveland.
Posted at 4:42 p.m.
Updated at 5:04 p.m.
The information was reported by the NFL Network and ESPN on Friday afternoon.
The Browns have reportedly awarded Watson a guaranteed 5-year, $230 million contract. It is the largest guaranteed contract in NFL history.
According to reports, the Texans will get three first-round picks as well as third- and fourth-round picks in return. Cleveland would also add a fifth-round pick to the equation.
It’s quite a change of course for the quarterback who, we learned in the last few days, had decided to exclude the Browns as an option after meeting with the organization. It was then reported that the Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons were the only three teams still in contention.
But things changed quickly. In the past few hours, Deshaun Watson informed the Houston Texans that he was willing to waive his no-move clause to be traded to the Cleveland Browns. That’s done.
The Browns first became interested in the 26-year-old after a grand jury earlier this month declined to indict him on allegations of sexual misconduct by 22 women.
Where will Mayfield go?
PHOTO CHARLES LECLAIRE, USA TODAY SPORTS ARCHIVES
Baker Mayfield
The Browns will now have to find a new team in Baker Mayfield. The 26-year-old quarterback has divorced the roster over the past few days, even going so far as to thank fans on social media in what felt like a goodbye.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Media, the Browns would have offered to meet Mayfield at his home in Texas to discuss, but the quarterback would have refused, judging that the bridges had been burned. However, the team refused to trade him.
Now that Cleveland has found its franchise quarterback, there’s no reason not to trade Mayfield. Some media indicate that the Seattle Seahawks and the Indianapolis Colts would be among the teams interested.