With Deshaun Watson's NFL hearing set on Tuesday, there have been rumblings about what kind of punishment the league might hand to him. Whatever the case may be, however, the Cleveland Browns will still be on the hook to pay him his salary.
As former Green Bay Packers VP Andrew Brandt noted, the Browns are going to have to pay Watson $45 million this season even if he's suspended for a year. To recall, Watson signed a five-year, $230 million deal with the Browns after the Texans traded him this offseason.
The said contract is fully guaranteed, which is probably one of the reasons why Watson agreed to be traded to Cleveland.
Even if suspended for the year, the Browns will pay Watson $45 million this season. https://t.co/0qN4nlKLo8
— Andrew Brandt (@AndrewBrandt) June 25, 2022
It remains to be seen what will happen to Deshaun Watson. Nonetheless, it is worth noting that there have been other talks that he could be suspended indefinitely–not just a one-year ban. While that also means it could be shorter, the uncertainty of the suspension makes it trickier to navigate.
Financially, Watson won't have a problem since his contract is guaranteed. He also has a base salary of just $1 million for 2022, something that the Browns and Watson agreed upon to reduce the financial hit on the embattled QB on each game he could miss.
The Browns certainly expected that there could be some sort of punishment on Watson, hence the structure of his contract. Still, they couldn't be happy with the situation and the possible long delay they could face in getting their pricey signal-caller.
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