Browns look at Deshaun Watson’s support system within the QB room

On Mar 30, 2023

Browns quarterback Josh Dobbs gets a pat on the head from Deshaun Watson after scoring against the Eagles, Sunday, Aug. 21, 2022 in Cleveland.

PHOENIX — The Browns’ success is going to be tied heavily into what Deshaun Watson does this season.

Making sure the quarterback has plenty of talent around him as been a major priority through the start of free agency. However, it’s not just about the players Watson might throw to or block for him.

“I think you’re trying year in and year out, you’re trying to give the quarterback a great structure, a great environment, obviously great players around him,” head coach Kevin Stefanski said during the NFL’s annual meetings this week at the Arizona Biltmore Resort. “You’re constantly trying to do that. I know Deshaun’s excited about the guys that we’ve added. I know he’s talked to all of them and I’m sure he’ll be throwing with them sooner than later. But our goal is always to make sure that our quarterback has everything at his disposal.”

Trading their second-round pick (No. 42) to the New York Jets last week for Elijah Moore and signing veterans Marquise Goodwin and Jordan Akins have helped the receiver and tight end positions. Re-signing center Ethan Pocic has helped to keep the offensive line intact.

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Also changing around Watson are some of the faces he’ll see in the meeting room. Quarterback coach Drew Petzing left to be the Arizona Cardinals’ offensive coordinator, while backup QB Jacoby Brissett — who started 11 games last year while Watson was suspended — signed a free-agent deal with Washington.

The Browns didn’t change the faces much, though, even with those departures. The only true new addition is longtime NFL assistant Bill Musgrave coming in as an offensive assistant.

Other than that, it’s people Watson knows. Offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt will take on the duties of working with the quarterbacks, even if he’s not taking on the added title. The exact gameday process is something to be fine-tuned before the season opens in September.

“We’re still working through that,” Stefanski said. “I think it’ll be similar to what we’ve done in the past. I think Drew Petzing was upstairs for us previously. Bill Musgrave will be upstairs, AVP will still be on the sideline with me and the quarterbacks, but all those things we’re still working through.”

The one thing Watson won’t have to do is get acquainted with maybe the person who’ll work the closest with him on a daily basis. To replace Brissett, the Browns brought back Josh Dobbs to be the backup quarterback.

Dobbs and Watson grew close a year ago when Dobbs was signed in April to be, what was thought at the time, the No. 3 quarterback. He was the backup to Brissett while Watson was out. Dobbs was waived upon Watson’s return from suspension and eventually ended up starting the final two regular-season games for Tennessee.

With a third-year player in Kellen Mond as the only other QB on the roster, the Browns re-signed Dobbs last week. This time, there’ll be no doubt about his role.

“I think it helps,” Stefanski said of the familiarity between Watson and Dobbs. “I don’t think that it was a prerequisite necessarily. I think it helps when you have guys that you’ve been through it, the battles with them and you know what makes them tick and those type of things. I think the role of the backup quarterbacks is to both support the starter and challenge a starter, challenge a starter in the way that you prepare. Make sure that you’re constantly pushing each other and I think that’s what Dobbs, and I think Kellen does that as well.”