Deshaun Watson calls out Eagles reporter over practice update
Deshaun Watson seems to be taking exception to comments made by Eagles reporter Eliot Shorr-Parks. The (limited) discourse surfaced on social media of the Cleveland quarterback’s performance against Philadelphia during joint practices.
Shorr-Parks provided an update on what he saw from practice. He said Watson threw as many touchdowns as interception (three) in the two joint practices.
“The Eagles definitely got the better of Watson during the joint practices,” Shorr-Parks wrote. “Watson had a few really nice throws at times, beating good coverage with better throws. His arm definitely has the ability to make special throws.
“The pass rush definitely got the better of Watson as he was really only effective in 7v7, not 11v11. The Eagles pressure forced Watson into some bad decisions, and in two days, they ended up picking him off as many times as they allowed (TDs).”
Watson didn’t add too much to the conversation, but he clearly didn’t appreciate the analysis. He quote-tweeted Shorr-Parks’ commented and added, “lol.” He also used a blue cap emoji — which indicates someone is lying (or so we’re told).
The Browns and Eagles participated in two joint practices before their Thursday night preseason game.
Watson enters his second year in Cleveland but this will be his first full season as the starting quarterback. Last year, he faced an 11-game suspension from the NFL and played in just six contests for the Browns in 2022.
Deshaun Watson talked about improvement earlier this summer
Watson was probably especially frustrated with those comments given his remarks about his improvement earlier in the summer. He says he feels much better about where he stands versus a year ago.
“I’m pretty far ahead of where I was last year,” Watson said in a recent press conference. “Last year was, as far as football and being on the field, just learning a new system. Trying to adapt to different teammates, different players, how guys run routes, how Kevin calls the plays.
“It’s just being able to process the game at the speed I know. Being a year in and being able to speak to Kevin and AVP about what we want to do and being confident about it, it allows me to play a little bit faster when I’m on the field.”
Watson will be entering his seventh NFL season in 2023. He played for Houston from 2016-21 before a trade sent him to Cleveland.