Who Should I Start? Deshaun Watson or Bailey Zappe

Thursday, March 6, 10:21 AM

The Cleveland Browns converted $44.75 million of Deshaun Watson's (Achilles) 2025 salary into a signing bonus, creating $35.8 million of cap space. The team has already reworked Watson's contract in the past but is continuing to make moves to make it less of a financial burden in the future. Watson signed a five-year, $230 million contract with Cleveland ahead of the 2022 campaign but, it's been a disastrous tenure for the former Houston Texans first-round pick. Watson has compiled a 9-10 record across three seasons behind 19 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions. The 29-year-old's 2023 season ended with a major shoulder injury, and his 2024 season was cut short after suffering a torn Achilles. Since his in-game Achilles tear, he has suffered another Achilles setback. Watson is not expected to play in 2025, and it would be a surprise if he sees any playing time for Cleveland in 2026.

Friday, March 14, 1:08 PM

A day after adding quarterback Gardner Minshew II to the quarterback room, the Kansas City Chiefs re-signed QB Bailey Zappe to an undisclosed one-year deal on Friday, a source told NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. Zappe began last season with the Kansas City Chiefs but eventually joined the Cleveland Browns and started the Week 18 regular-season finale against the division-rival Baltimore Ravens, going 16-for-31 for 170 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. The 25-year-old former fourth-round pick (137th overall) by the New England Patriots in 2022 out of Western Kentucky will open the 2025 season as Kansas City's third-stringer behind Mahomes and Minshew. In his three years in the NFL, he has completed 62.1% of his 335 pass attempts for 2,223 yards, 12 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.