Todd Monken: Deshaun Watson still has room to improve after two straight wins

Deshaun Watson wasn’t perfect, but he did what was needed late in the game to secure the 21-18 win over the Panthers and take Cleveland to 2-1 — the team’s first winning record since 2023. Watson answered Carolina’s fourth-quarter scores twice and was not met with echoes of fan discontent after the comeback.

As NFL.com reports, Watson completed 16 of 30 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns, but also missed many throws, some nearly uncatchable — including several for rookie KC Concepcion. He was also lucky to avoid being intercepted several times. One notable change was his pocket movement; Watson was used more often as a runner, with 11 carries for 45 yards, and his calmer style under pressure was a positive sign. The main challenges remain the pace of play and accuracy on deep passes — according to Next Gen stats, only 23.2% of his attempts were deep throws in the first three weeks.

New head coach Todd Monken said he appreciates the work Watson has done and considers it progress, but added there is still plenty to improve. Monken told reporters the team and the coaching staff must clean up the mistakes in this short week to be as ready as possible for Friday night, doing as much as they can to deliver their best performance.

While not a full return to the Watson of his early career, the latest performance shows he can move the offense and deliver decisive moments when needed. According to NFL.com, even his small improvements matter greatly for the Browns’ outlook.