Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam is "perplexed" by his franchise's struggles this season, but expressed support for coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry when speaking with ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
"We went from 11-6 and making the playoffs to 3-10, so it's a little perplexing that happened," Haslam told Fowler.
Cleveland's primary roster issue surrounds their very expensive quarterback Deshaun Watson, who tore his Achilles and is out for the season. Even when he was healthy, Watson struggled with his performance, appearing primed to be benched at any moment if it weren't for the record contract he signed in 2022. Watson is owed $92 million guaranteed over the next two seasons and a roster cut would lead to $100 million in dead salary cap hits, making roster building difficult.
Even so, Haslam is not opposed to looking at the future of the position this offseason. When asked about quarterback by Fowler, Haslam didn't dismiss the idea of somebody different next season. "We need to get through the season and we will look at everything," Haslam said.
This is the first time that Haslam has even hinted at evaluating the status of Watson moving forward. The veteran completed 63.4% of his passes for 1,148 yards and five touchdowns to three interceptions in seven games before his season-ending Achilles injury.
Jameis Winston hasn't been too much better in his place, completing 60.9% of his throws for 1,975 yards and 13 touchdowns to nine interceptions in six contests.
More of the Latest Around the NFL
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam Finally Acknowledges Team's Quarterback Problem.
