Who Should I Start? Deshaun Watson or Aidan O'Connell

Sunday, November 23, 10:08 AM

Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (Achilles) made his first road trip of the regular season and will be on the sideline for Sunday's Week 12 game against the Las Vegas Raiders, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Watson has reportedly offered plenty of help to Dillon Gabriel (concussion) and Shedeur Sanders this season, and he worked closely with Sanders to help him understand the game plan before his first NFL start on Sunday. However, Sanders' start isn't the only reason why Watson made the trip. According to Cabot, it's also the first time the veteran quarterback was healthy enough to travel this season. In fact, he could be nearing a return to game action. Watson remains on the PUP list and might have his 21-day practice window activated soon, according to Cabot. The 30-year-old has been sidelined for over a year, but it appears his return could be coming in the near future.

Wednesday, November 19, 3:15 PM

The Las Vegas Raiders announced on Wednesday that they activated quarterback Aidan O'Connell (wrist) from Injured Reserve. O'Connell has missed all of the 2025 season to this point after suffering a fractured right wrist in the preseason. It's possible that Geno Smith's poor play could open the door for O'Connell to make starts under center for the Raiders before the end of the year, but it's unclear if that's potentially in play as early as Week 12 when the team takes on the visiting Cleveland Browns this Sunday. Kenny Pickett has been serving as Smith's backup for the first 11 weeks of the season, but O'Connell could quickly jump him on the depth chart now that he's back. The 27-year-old has a 62.6% completion rate in his two years in the NFL, throwing for 3,830 yards, 20 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions in 20 games (17 starts).