Deshaun Watson makes admission about return to Houston

Jun 14, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) runs a play during minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns won in Deshaun Watson’s first game as starting quarterback, but Watson was willing to admit that the entire occasion was not necessarily what he had been expecting.

Watson’s debut came in Houston against the Texans, the team where he spent his first five seasons of his career. On Wednesday, the Browns quarterback admitted that the occasion hit him harder than he had expected.

“Yeah, I think last week, it was a lot,” Watson said, via Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com. “The anticipation to just be back on the field, the anticipation of going back to my former team, the anticipation of playing against former teammates and being in front of a crowd that used to cheer for me at the time. So all that stuff was definitely, it was a lot.”

Watson did not say it, but there was also the added angle of how he left and the circumstances that went into the move. After demanding a trade, Watson faced more than two dozen sexual misconduct allegations, which led to his suspension to start the season. That combination meant Watson faced a fairly unforgiving environment in his first game.

Watson went just 12/31 for 131 yards in his Cleveland debut. The Browns will expect more in his second game against the Cincinnati Bengals.