Deshaun Watson enters the 2026 season as a highly volatile quarterback option tethered to a rebuilding franchise. His declining metrics and lack of job security make him a fade in standard fantasy leagues without much question.
Should I Draft Deshaun Watson in Fantasy Football?
Watson struggled significantly during his last sustained stretch of NFL action. In his first six starts of the 2024 season, he ran for 24.7 rushing yards per game, and that’s nice, but he took 5.2 sacks per contest, a reflection that he wasn’t seeing defenses well.
Those metrics highlight a steep decline in mobility and pocket awareness. That production occurred back in 2024, and his poor performance during the current preseason makes it entirely fair to worry about the current state of his skill set. Add in the circus that is Cleveland these days, and it makes getting excited about any of the attached pieces nearly impossible.
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There is no guarantee that Watson holds the starting job for very long this season, obviously. A short leash could theoretically unlock a highly aggressive approach on the field. That aggressive mindset might return some spike weeks if he throws caution to the wind, but in practice, you’re never going to be able to sell yourself on him over any of the 20+ QBs that possess season-long upside in this golden era at the position.
Cleveland is a team in desperate need of a total roster rebuild. Watson simply does not factor into that long-term picture, and that figures to make his stay atop of this depth chart a short one.
If the coaching staff decides he is the best option to distribute the ball to their young pass catchers, he will survive in the starting role for a brief period. Even in that best-case scenario, you cannot trust him in standard single quarterback lineups because we aren’t sure just how much damage those WRs can do with the opportunity should it be presented to them.
Watson currently exists as nothing more than a cheap DFS flier or a short-term depth piece for Superflex formats where starting quarterbacks are scarce. Your season isn’t going to be undone because you took a negative stance here.
Kyle Soppe’s QB Fantasy Rankings 2026
- Josh Allen | BUF
- Drake Maye | NE
- Joe Burrow | CIN
- Lamar Jackson | BAL
- Jayden Daniels | WAS
- Caleb Williams | CHI
- Justin Herbert | LAC
- Jalen Hurts | PHI
- Jaxson Dart | NYG
- Trevor Lawrence | JAX
- Dak Prescott | DAL
- Bo Nix | DEN
- Patrick Mahomes II | KC
- Brock Purdy | SF
- Matthew Stafford | LAR
- Jared Goff | DET
- Kyler Murray | MIN
- Jordan Love | GB
- Baker Mayfield | TB
- Daniel Jones | IND
- Tyler Shough | NO
- Malik Willis | MIA
- Aaron Rodgers | PIT
- C.J. Stroud | HOU
- Sam Darnold | SEA
- Cam Ward | TEN
- Bryce Young | CAR
- Jacoby Brissett | ARI
- Fernando Mendoza | LV
- Kirk Cousins | LV
- Geno Smith | NYJ
- Tua Tagovailoa | ATL
