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Daniel Oyefusi, ESPN
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — In response to a question about what he has altered entering the 2024 season compared to his previous two years with the Cleveland Browns, quarterback Deshaun Watson said Friday that he’s focused on blocking out external factors.
“Honestly, it’s really just blocking out all the bulls— outside. Stuff coming in two years, different environment, different team, different all that,” Watson said. “So, you come in and your character is being mentioned this way and it kind of flip on you and you’re trying to get people to like you or improve. But now it’s like, at the end of the day, it’s two years in and if you don’t like me or you have your own opinion, it is what it is.
“[I’m] blocking out all the noise and focusing on me, focusing on what I need to do to be the best Deshaun Watson I can be for myself, for my family and for my teammates.”
Watson served an 11-game suspension in 2022 after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct during massage sessions. A pair of Texas grand juries declined to pursue criminal charges against Watson, but he served his suspension after the NFL and the NFL Players Association reached a settlement in his disciplinary matter.
When asked whether it has been tough to block outside noise, Watson said, “Of course. My character was being challenged. Like I said, I know who I am. A lot of people never really knew my history or knew who I really was, so they’re going based off other people’s opinions and whatever other people are saying.
“I’m a person that likes to have people like me and I feel like a lot of people are like that. So, sometimes things in your brain, you’ve just got to churn and you’ve got to just be like, ‘Forget it.’ It is what it is.”
Suspension and injuries have limited Watson, a three-time Pro Bowl selection with the Houston Texans, to just 12 games since the Browns traded six draft picks for him and gave him a fully guaranteed $230 million deal in March 2022. Watson’s 41.9 QBR since making his debut in Cleveland is the sixth lowest in the NFL during that time frame.
This offseason, Watson rehabbed the season-ending surgery to his throwing shoulder he underwent in November. On Friday, he participated in 11-on-11 drills for the first time since the surgery.
When asked what his motivation is for the 2024 season, Watson said, “Just being the best Deshaun Watson can be for this team, so we can get that ultimate goal and maximizing our potential and our talent.”
Asked in a follow-up whether he’s motivated by proving people wrong and quarterback rankings that no longer place him among the NFL’s elite, Watson responded: “I [couldn’t] give two f—s about [what] the people say, to be honest.”
