The Cleveland Browns have been one of the better stories in the NFL this season. They have one of, if not, the best defenses in the NFL. They rank first in the NFL in EPA per play allowed, per rbsdm.com. They allow 243 yards per game; the Baltimore Ravens rank second in that statistic at 271.7 yards per game. Their defense has allowed fewer than 20 points in four of the six games they've played this season.
They're currently tied with the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers in the loss column atop the AFC North division. They're in great shape. That is, aside from the quarterback position.
Things have gotten weird with Deshaun Watson. The Browns cleared him to play before their Week 4 loss to the Ravens, but Watson sat out that game. He also missed Cleveland's next game after their Week 5 bye week.
He returned to action in Week 7 against the Indianapolis Colts, but he left that game early and didn't return. Now, Watson has already been ruled out for Cleveland's Week 8 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks and could be out even longer than that.
PJ Walker has held down the fort for the Browns the last two weeks and has performed admirably. The Browns have won both of those games Walker has played, but he has completed only 50% of his passes and is averaging a meager 5.6 yards per attempt.
Deshaun Watson wasn't playing well *before* this injury and hasn't looked anything close to the Texans version of himself after. The Browns should try to trade for a quarterback; their defense demands it. Bringing back a former face couldn't hurt.
Cleveland Browns trade a conditional fourth-round pick to the Washington Commanders for Jacoby Brissett
It worked before, so why wouldn't it work again?
Why the Browns do it
Jacoby Brissett was impressive for the Browns last season. Brissett posted an EPA plus completion percentage over expectation (CPOE) composite score of 0.105 last season. That was basically tied with Trevor Lawrence for 13th among quarterbacks.
He didn't do that on an insignificant sample size either. Brissett posted that score on 464 plays last season. For comparison's sake, Dak Prescott posted a score of 0.113 on 472 plays. Lamar Jackson's score was 0.084 on 475 plays.
The Browns got a lot out of Jacoby Brissett with the same offensive system in tow. Granted, Brissett also had Nick Chubb behind him last season and he wouldn't be there now if the Browns were to acquire Brissett again and neither is right tackle Jack Conklin, but roughly the same personnel is there as is the same offensive system.
Brissett knows the offense and knows how to operate within it efficiently. He'd be great insurance if Watson's shoulder continues to compromise his play and availability. Heck, forget insurance. Brissett was straight-up *better* than Watson last season.
The Browns owe Deshaun Watson an exorbitant amount of money, money they can't get out of. Watson also has the higher ceiling between him and Brissett. But at the moment, Brissett's baseline performance level is better than Watson's, and if the Browns defense continues to keep up this level of play, that's all they really need.
If Watson continues to struggle or Cleveland is forced into playing PJ Walker, they won't be able to reach the heights this defense is presenting them. They might be able to get there with Jacoby Brissett.
Why the Commanders do it
The Commanders do this trade because he isn't playing. They're all in on finding out if Sam Howell is their guy. Head coach Ron Rivera recently stated that he is “committed” to Howell (via Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post) starting the rest of the season as he and the organization should be.
The Commanders don't have the look of a contender. They rank 22nd in the NFL in offensive EPA per play and 26th in defensive EPA per play allowed. While they do have three wins on the season, they're 27th in the NFL in point differential through Week 7. That doesn't seem anything like a contender.
The Commanders could have a top pick in the draft if that level of play continues. That means they could be in a spot to draft a franchise quarterback. But it is possible Howell could be that guy. They'll only know if they continue to play him.
If all Brissett is to them is a backup, trading him wouldn't drastically alter their plans. The extra draft picks would be more valuable to the Commanders than having Brissett sit on the sidelines.
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